188 replies to this topic

[85Knight]

I think if there is hope, it is for the last week or so of the season. Or even the playoffs. There is nothing wrong with hoping for the best.

That's my thinking too. No way would he be traveling with the team let alone stretching with a torn UCL. This is sounding like a grade 1 sprain. There must be a chance that he's coming back this season.

[Mike B]

That's my thinking too. No way would he be traveling with the team let alone stretching with a torn UCL. This is sounding like a grade 1 sprain. There must be a chance that he's coming back this season.

Agreed.  We designated 2 pitchers in the last 2 days.  I am pretty sure Elias would have avoided releasing one of them if they thought Felix was an absolute no.

[DuffMan]

Personally I think he's done.   The fact that they are still waiting for swelling to subside to get a clean mri has me concerned.  I think the O's are just doing their due dilligence in being sure he's done for the year before going to the 60 day DL

[85Knight]

Holy ! Bautista is throwing.

[85Knight]

Agreed. We designated 2 pitchers in the last 2 days. I am pretty sure Elias would have avoided releasing one of them if they thought Felix was an absolute no.

We might have been right.

[Mike B]

Holy ! Bautista is throwing.

I had not seen that.  We will know soon.  

I did notice the day Fuji saved the 5-4 game against the Angels that Felix put him in a bear hug when he came off the field.

[85Knight]

I had not seen that. We will know soon.
I did notice the day Fuji saved the 5-4 game against the Angels that Felix put him in a bear hug when he came off the field.

Sounds like he's definitely throwing but no real word on what that means. Even he doesn't pitch this year this is still great news if he can come back healthy in 2024.

[BSLMikeLowe]

Seems hard to imagine they’d let him throw if they weren’t confident there was no serious UCL damage.

[hallas]

Seems hard to imagine they’d let him throw if they weren’t confident there was no serious UCL damage.

 

Because I'm a nerd that has to look everything up, I looked up some nonsurgical treatments, and with the caveat that I'm not a doctor, it sounds like PRP therapy has a decent success rate (~60%) for a low-grade partial tear, with a return to play time in the 4-6 week range.  In football, nonsurgical UCL recovery is about 4 weeks, but quarterbacks  put less strain on their UCL than pitchers do, so it's tough to make a perfect comparison.  They typically opt for surgical repair because nonsurgical is more likely than not to fail even for low-grade tears, but it seems like PRP is promising for low-grade tears.  Whether they do PRP therapy or more traditional rest/rehab the recovery time is pretty similar.

[BaltBird 24]

I remember Zach Britton went through PRP therapy when it was still relatively new. Didn't work great for him.

[BSLChrisStoner]

Balt Sun: Orioles reset: Félix Bautista playing catch was ‘strange,’ a doctor says. Here’s what it might mean.

[Mike B]

It looks like Felix is on the field tossing the ball right now.  What he is doing and pitching are worlds apart, but he is out there.

https://twitter.com/...304343322919017

[Nigel Tufnel]

Here's what the doctor in the Baltimore Sun article said:

 

Gilotra, who is not treating the Orioles’ closer, said the UCL is unneeded in most aspects of daily life, with athletic acts such as hard throwing, gymnastic landings and powerlifting being the ligament’s primary applications. Bautista, who has yet to address the injury himself, could still perform light throwing even if his UCL wasn’t intact, Gilotra said, though it wouldn’t necessarily make much sense for him to do so.

 

“If it’s fully torn, he could still do it. But if it’s fully torn, why would you?” Gilotra said. “Like, what are you warming up for next, right? … Usually, you wouldn’t do that if you were preparing for a reconstruction or even a repair.

 

“If you’re just playing gentle catch, you’re not hurting yourself. But for the high-level athlete, there’s no reason just to stay warm, so I honestly don’t know what that means. Does that mean that he, in secret, had some of these [PRP] injections already and he’s just slowly returning to throw? I feel like that’s unlikely that it would be such a secret, but it is strange. … I think the confusing part then is what’s next, right? Is this in preparation for harder throwing later?”

[85Knight]

Here's what the doctor in the Baltimore Sun article said:

The way this has been handled is extremely strange. The fact that he's been in full uniform, traveling with the team and throwing a baseball but they won't tell us how bad he's hurt is baffling. If they're still waiting for the swelling to go down after more than 2 weeks to get a clean MRI why would you allow him to throw a baseball. If they don't know how bad he's hurt why risk it?

[85Knight]

OK. Finally a little bit if clarity. Sounds like there's a chance he pitches again this year albeit a slim one. Elias is describing it as a partial tear.

https://www.si.com/f...-return-in-2023

[BSLMikeLowe]

As long as they are not risking further damage, meaning he could miss all of '24 vs being able to pitch all or at least part of next season, then okay I guess. Even if it's just light backyard-style tossing, it seems odd they'd have him doing that, but that's the pessimist in me who has already written off any chance of Felix returning this season.

[makoman]

Elias doesn't seem like the kind of guy who would risk throwing out all of 2024 to have him for a couple series in 2023, even playoff series. So I doubt they're going to be doing this if they are risking making it worse. Hope so at least.

[mdrunning]

If the Orioles were out of contention, Felix would have had the surgery already. He's not coming back this season.

[85Knight]

I'm also starting to believe they're keeping him active to keep the team moral up. As long as he's not risking any further damage no harm no foul. Having surgery now is no different from surgery next month.

[BSLSteveBirrer]

Not sure I buy into the surgery now vs a month or two down the road doesn't make a difference as far as when he could return. Since it is a partial tear then the level of surgical procedure is less than the full meal deal and seems like he could have that kind of surgery and still pitch next season?