Unfortunately, one of the biggest storylines early in the 2024 season has been the rash of pitchers suffering significant elbow injuries. The Guardians’ Shane Bieber and the Marlins’ Eury Perez are undergoing Tommy John surgery, and there’s concern over the Braves’ Spencer Strider.
Before the game Sunday against the Dodgers, Cubs manager Craig Counsell was asked about the outbreak, and he stressed the importance of being careful with pitchers at this stage of the year.
“My take has always been: The early part of the season’s a dangerous time for pitchers, period. No matter what,” Counsell said. “We take care of them in spring training and then games matter. The weather’s different and conditions are different. I don’t know if I know how to explain injury trends.”
Theories are rampant about why pitchers are getting hurt. One idea is that pitchers’ efforts to throw harder and harder is part of the problem.
Counsell isn’t so sure that’s the cause.
“Pitchers are going to pursue things that make them get hitters out, and velocity is one of them,” Counsell said. “I don’t think the pursuit of velocity is ever going to end because it’s something that makes pitchers better. I don’t think we should demonize the pursuit of velocity. If there is a problem, I don’t think that’s the issue.”
On Saturday, Tony Clark, executive director of the Major League Baseball Players Association, released a statement blaming the shorter pitch clock installed in December, a season after it was introduced.
Making the save
Just before game time, reliever Julian Merryweather was put on the 15-day injured list with a strained right shoulder, retroactive to April 6. Daniel Palencia was recalled from Triple-A Iowa to replace Merryweather.
Palencia ended up pitching the last three innings and allowed one run to earn the save, the first of his career.
“It feels great,” Palencia said. “I really have no words to describe the moment. It feels incredible. During the offseason, I got my body ready to be able to do it.”
Take an earlier break?
By the bottom of the fourth inning, it was clear thegame would be paused. In the middle of the Cubs’ at-bats, the grounds crew was summoned to throw bags of sand onto the infield to keep it dry, holding up the action for about six minutes.
Just before the delay, Dodgers third baseman Miguel Rojas short-hopped a throw to first for the Dodgers’ third error.
“We could have done the same thing by stopping the game a little earlier,” Rojas said. “We were going to sit here and play the game, anyway. But I feel like playing in those conditions later in the fourth, it was a little bit too much for the sake of players’ health. We’re not trying to get just a game in; we’re trying to play 162 games, get through a season and be strong late in the year.”
Injury updates
Jameson Taillon (back strain) pitched Sunday for Double-A Tennessee, throwing 52 pitches in 2‰ innings and allowing four runs (three earned). Patrick Wisdom (back strain) served as the designated hitter for Iowa, going 2-for-2 with a walk.
