Blogs

Jeff Gordon

Ailing Arms

June 23, 2007 10:21pm CDT

Pitchers don't last forever. They just don't.

Pitching injuries torment real-life baseball general managers, given the enormous long-term money committed to veteran hurlers. When they go down, both the pitching staff and the team budget are compromised.

These injuries are a hassle for fantasy GMs, too, since replacements become harder to find as the season drags on and casualties mount.

Just look at the damage that occurred this week:

  • Curt Schilling, Red Sox: The good news? His MRI showed no major structural damage. The bad news? His fastball lacked its usual zip during his two outings – it was clocked in the mid-80s instead of the low 90s -- and he will spend at least 15 days on the disabled list.

    During those two setbacks, Schilling, 40, allowed 19 hits and 12 runs (11 earned) in 9 1/3 innings. Opponents hit .442 against him in those two starts.

    "My goal has always been to be consistent and give the team innings, and I've been as far from that as you can be, and that's frustrating," Schilling told the Boston Globe. "What I'm doing is not working. I'm not executing. It's not just one thing. It's a combination of a lot of different things. To pinpoint one thing probably would be wrong."

  • Randy Johnson, Diamondbacks: A disk injury is not good news for a pitcher, especially a 6-foot-10 power pitcher in his 40s.

    The Big Unit had this same problem last season and underwent surgical repairs. The Diamondbacks were very disappointed the problem returned, since Johnson was 4-2 with a 3.52 ERA in nine starts this season.

    During his last six outings, he had not allowed more than three runs in an outing.

    "It's a little bit of a setback and a little frustrating," Johnson told the Arizona Republic. "I feel like I've hit my stride, I think my numbers indicate that. Last year I had a (high) ERA because my back was bothering me. I think I put a lot of things to rest when I came back here and I started pitching well. Obviously, I'll have to go into it with a positive frame of mind."

  • Jason Schmidt, Dodgers: That he needed season-ending shoulder surgery came as no surprise this summer. He missed a chunk of the season with a strained shoulder, then quickly lost his velocity (to the mid-80s!) after attempting his return.

    Schmidt, who came to the Dodgers for a three-year, $47 million contract, has a torn labrum that could sideline him into next season. He finishes the year with a 1-4 record with a 6.31 earned-run average.

    For the time being, Chad Billingsley will attempt to fill the rotation void. But the Dodgers may have to deal some of their surplus young hitters for a significant starting pitcher to give staff aces Brad Penny and Derek Lowe some help.

    "With all due respect, (Schmidt) hasn't thrown well," Dodgers General Manager Ned Colletti told the Los Angeles Times. "It's not as if he was on his way to a Cy Young season and suddenly you lost him."

  • Braden Looper, Cardinals: He had been one of fantasy baseball's big surprises after his conversion from late-inning relief to starting pitching. But experts wondered when he might hit an innings-pitched wall . . . and that time finally came.

    Looper was 3-1 with a 1.91 ERA in April. But he slipped to 3-3 with a 5.35 ERA May and had an 0-2 record with a 8.82 ERA in June.

    His injury keeps Kip Wells in the rotation, despite his 3-11 record. The injury could also bring Tomo Ohka into the rotation, since the former Blue Jay signed a two-week minor league deal as an audition.

    Cardinals ace Chris Carpenter is making rapid progress from minor elbow surgery and could return after the All-Star Break. The rest of the team's rotation features converted relievers Brad Thompson and Todd Wellemeyer, postseason relief hero Adam Wainwright and winless youngster Anthony Reyes.

    That's not exactly one-stop shopping for fantasy GMs.

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