Injury Update: Brandon Beachy & Johnny Venters
June 6, 2012; Miami, FL, USA; Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Brandon Beachy (37) looks on from the dugout during the seventh inning against the Miami Marlins at Marlins Park. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
Brandon Beachy has been throwing a number of batting-practice sessions lately, but threw his last one yesterday. He will throw a side session this coming Sunday before beginning his minor league rehab assignments next week, where manager Fredi Gonzalez plans to have him throw about six rehab sessions. Brandon has been feeling good, throwing good, and the Braves hope that he will be able to return to the lineup sometime in mid-June. By then, it will have been almost exactly a year since Beachy underwent Tommy John surgery to repair the right hander’s ailing elbow.
It should be interesting to see what Atlanta will do with Brandon Beachy when he does return to Atlanta. Last season, before the problem with his elbow reared its ugly head, Beachy was one of the best pitchers in MLB, with a 2.00 ERA in 13 starts. With some control problems being shown by both Julio Teheran and Kris Medlen, the door could be open for Brandon to come back, step up to the mound, and take a vital role in the starting rotation. Of course, there is a quite a bit of time until mid-June, and there is no guarantee that Beachy will be back by then. Much of that will depend on how well he feels, and how well he performs during his rehab starts.
I was trying to remember the last time I had a platelet-rich plasma injection, but I just cannot recall. That’s a joke, if you didn’t get it! It was no joke for Johnny Venters though, as he underwent the procedure about six weeks ago to help avoid surgery when he was injured during spring training. After resting the arm for as long as his doctor recommended, Johnny Venters planned to throw just 15 to 20 pitches on Thursday to gauge how the arm is doing, but had to cut the session short because of continued soreness in the arm. It was unclear whether it was just the typical soreness you feel when throwing hard after a long layoff, and only time will tell. When asked about his arm, Johnny said…
Aug 29, 2012; San Diego, CA, USA; Atlanta Braves relief pitcher Jonny Venters (39) pitches during the eighth inning against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports
"You’re putting new stress on it, different stress than you are when you throw flat ground. Might be one of those things where you’ve just got to get used to throwing off that mound again. It didn’t feel great, but see how it feels tomorrow. I was putting something on it, for sure. Ball’s still coming out decent, just didn’t feel very good. So we’ll see."
Let’s all hope it was just simple soreness after a long layoff, and that Johnny can continue normal rehab until his return. Venters struggled during spring training, showing an uncharacteristic lack of control for him, so getting him healthy and back to the pitcher he has always been is top priority for the Atlanta Braves.
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