Tommy John surgery. This is a surgery to replace an injured elbow ligament with another ligament. Beginning with Dr. Frank Jobe’s surgery on Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Tommy John in 1974, numerous pitchers have recovered their careers through this surgery.
Toronto Blue Jays left-handed starting pitcher Ryu Hyun-jin (36) is one of them. He returned 13 and a half months after undergoing surgery last year, and has pitched 29 innings in 6 games, recording an ERA of 2.48.
While Ryu Hyun-jin was quietly following his own path in a country a thousand miles away, another pitcher across the Pacific in Korea became a ‘descendant of Tommy John.’
Kiwoom Heroes ace Ahn Woo-jin (24) is the main character.
He has appeared in 24 games this season, recorded 9 wins, 7 losses, and an ERA of 2.39, reigning as the best starting pitcher in the KBO League. He was diagnosed with a medial collateral ligament injury at the hospital he visited to treat elbow pain, and underwent Tommy John surgery.소닉카지노
Although Ryu Hyun-jin and Ahn Woo-jin are not on the same page, they have a relationship as they belong to the same agency. He even trained with them during the off-season.
I asked Ryu Hyun-jin, who I met at the clubhouse ahead of the away game against the Colorado Rockies on the 3rd (Korean time), what he would like to say to Ahn Woo-jin.
Ryu Hyun-jin, who sat down on a chair after taking a hot half-body bath and wiping his reddened body with a towel, said, “I don’t think it’s a big concern. Time solves the problem. “It is a surgery with almost no failures, and (in) Woojin is young,” he said, expressing his thoughts.
As he said, Tommy John surgery is one of the surgeries with a high success rate. According to ‘Medical News Today’, the probability of return is 80-95%.
However, it is a surgery that tears and sutures the flesh and muscles. Rehabilitation is not an easy journey. There are many cases where people have a hard time finding their old form after returning. Medical News Today reported that 20% of pitchers who undergo surgery do not recover to their pre-surgery level.
When asked, ‘What do you think is the most important thing in the rehabilitation process?’, Ryu Hyun-jin answered, “There is no setback.” It was emphasized that injuries should not reoccur.
So what should we do for rehabilitation without ‘setback’?
He said, “You shouldn’t increase (the amount of training) by going too far in one shot. “We must do what is natural,” he said, emphasizing the importance of not being greedy.
Ryu Hyun-jin returned after 13 and a half months, which is quite fast for a Tommy John surgery rehabilitation, but he has shown stable form since his return. The reason he was able to show this kind of performance was probably because he went through rehabilitation without recurrence of injury as expected.
Attention is being paid to whether the best ace in Korean professional baseball, who is taking a break due to an injury, will be able to heed the advice of this ‘Tommy John senior’.