Braun's Thumb

[Warning Track Power]

http://brewersbeat.mlblogs.com/2014/04/04/braunthumb/

 

Awesome news...

 

Even if it wasn't a guarantee to work, why not just have the surgery when he was suspended and see if it would improve it? I don't understand his or the organization's thinking to not have the surgery.

[Roscoe Chill]

Because it's just an excuse to DH in an environment that will be unpleasant? Why didn't anything come up when he was hitting .600 this spring?

[liveforoctober]

Because it's just an excuse to DH in an environment that will be unpleasant? Why didn't anything come up when he was hitting .600 this spring?

 

*nods*

[PrinceEatMeat]

Roenicke said a few days ago that he planned to DH Ramirez, Lucroy, and Segura in this series. I have a hard time believing that this is being done just to protect Braun from the fans. Braun himself even said that the thumb started to get worse as he got more spring training at-bats.

[trwi7]

Because it's just an excuse to DH in an environment that will be unpleasant? Why didn't anything come up when he was hitting .600 this spring?

 

Because it was the first time in months he was facing live pitching and it probably took a while to flare up before it started bothering him.

[MoreTrife]

The first time the thumb was mentioned in spring training WITHOUT a "everything is 100%, feels awesome" I was ticked off. How is it NOT better after five months off?? I knew it would become an issue and here we go. Massive fuel to the "he'll never be good again without steroids" camp too.

 

ugh,.

[Greg Vaughn]

Absolutely dumb not to get this procedure done in the off-season. Irresponsible on Braun and the organization's part. Another lost season if he isn't healthy.

[MadScientist]

http://brewersbeat.mlblogs.com/2014/04/04/braunthumb/

 

Awesome news...

 

Even if it wasn't a guarantee to work, why not just have the surgery when he was suspended and see if it would improve it? I don't understand his or the organization's thinking to not have the surgery.

 

Well the article you linked to says why:

Braun did not have surgery at that time because there are no guarantees it will work, and the hope existed that rest would resolve the problem. It did improve during his hiatus, and Braun belted a home run in his first Spring Training at-bat and hit three homers in the spring overall.

Surgery isn't like fixing a car. Even if you fix the initial problem, the impact of slicing up flesh, especially in a highly mobile part of the body can easily have long term or permanent consequences.

[BradWI]

The first time the thumb was mentioned in spring training WITHOUT a "everything is 100%, feels awesome" I was ticked off. How is it NOT better after five months off?? I knew it would become an issue and here we go. Massive fuel to the "he'll never be good again without steroids" camp too.

 

ugh,.

 

Yep, you could tell by everyone's indirect answers to questions about it that it was much more of a problem than they were letting on.

[TheCrew07]

Maybe now since the issue is with our star player people will quit defending the Brewers' medical staff, who are by no means special or progressive. They've made strides compared to where they were pre-Melvin, but the same injuries keep coming back around year after year for the same players and this has been an on going issue from the minors to the majors since I found bf.net and started paying attention.

[torts]

I read that Shane Victorino had the surgery on his hand this offseason and Braun found out that it really wasnt that successful, so I mean, surgery doesnt always fix everything, especially when it comes to nerves.

[Cool Hand Lucroy]

Is there any possibility that Braun can "get used to it"? I ask in all seriousness. It sounds like part of the issue is that he can't feel his thumb on the bat. I imagine there's the potential for something like that to lead to overcompensating with other parts of the hand, which might be the main cause of the discomfort?

 

I guess what I'm wondering, for those that know more than I do about anatomy, is whether or not this is an injury that's going to get progressively worse. Or is it something that will be a constant annoyance?

[SRB]

If even surgery is not very effective that means what, Braun's career (at least as a star player) is over? I don't understand why padding wouldn't be effective. Hopefully it's something that he adjusts to or it just goes away.

[DoubleSwitch]

All of a sudden, everyone is an expert on thumb surgery? I can only assume Braun made his decision in good faith while consulting with people with much more knowledge and information that anyone in this thread. I really don't think it's fair to second guess Braun or the medical staff on this one.

[Invader3K]

Maybe now since the issue is with our star player people will quit defending the Brewer's medical staff, who are by no means special or progressive. They've made strides compared to where they were pre-Melvin, but the same injuries keep coming back around year after year for the same players and this has been an on going issue from the minors to the majors since I found bf.net and started paying attention.

 

And other teams don't have similar issues?

 

Anyway, I highly doubt that Braun is the DH to "protect" him from the fans in Boston. It's not like they're in St. Louis today.

[FVBrewerFan]

Don't you think Braun went to specialists for advice? Some of you make it sound like it was the Brewers medical staff who made the decision. Not one of us knows if it was wise or not to have the surgery. Or maybe one of you saw his x-rays and considered the many times you've done this procedure?

[Fear The Chorizo]

What I do know is that if "getting used to it" leads to our #3 hitter continuing to perform horribly, I think it sets up perfectly for another one of those 5-7 game off periods keeping Braun out of the lineup but also active - which wastes a roster spot and 90% of the time leads to the team retroactively DL-ing a player anyways.

 

It's early, but he's had one single over a SS's out-stretched glove so far in 4 games. Starting to get very alarming, because if 9 months of relative rest isn't enough to heal things to be able to play effectively with it, surgery's the likely option. For a hitter, that kind of thumb/hand surgery could easily be a season-ender.

[jerichoholicninja]

If it's nerve damage, there's really nothing you can do. We don't have the technology to repair nerves yet. If he was having pain because of the nerve, then you could do something about it but the problem is that he can't feel anything in his thumb and that's leading to other problems like blisters.

[DHonks]

frustrating on a couple of notes. In Spring Training Braun was awesome. Does this mean he needs 2 days off per week to rest it? Secondly, we need to get Gindl up here so we have a 4th OF with offensive potential.

[brewmann04]

I heard that the thumb with a Blister effects his throwing grip more than his bat.

[PrinceEatMeat]

frustrating on a couple of notes. In Spring Training Braun was awesome. Does this mean he needs 2 days off per week to rest it? Secondly, we need to get Gindl up here so we have a 4th OF with offensive potential.

 

He hit 3 of his 4 HR by March 5. After that his numbers weren't that outstanding the rest of spring. He said it started to flare up as ST went on. So really once it flared up, his numbers got progressively worse, and that has continued into the season. It's really frustrating.

[3and2Fastball]

He probably needs to sit....

[Invader3K]

0-5 day yesterday means he probably could use a day off. Hopefully this thing can get nipped in the bud quickly so we don't need to hear about it all season.

[JohnBriggs12]

His LD% so far this year is 43%, more than double his career norm. He's 1 for 14 on balls in play. In short he's been unlucky to the extreme. That will even out.

 

His HR potential might be down to around 20-24, but there's no reason he can't be a .300 hitter.

[logan82]

Nothing in the stats means anything right now. How he looks at the plate is all that matters.