Overusing college arms?
I want to hear from parents with college-age pitchers. The other night in Austin, Longhorn lefthander Austin Wood from Kingwood threw 169 pitches in relief! He was brilliant, but 169 pitches! Rice pitcher Mike Ojala is throwing with a torn ligament in his pitching elbow. It has been an on-going controversy: Do college coaches ask too much of young pitchers? Not just Augie Garrido at Texas or Wayne Graham at Rice, but all college coaches face the problem of a couple or 3 quality arms and the temptation to over-use is ever present. Wood wanted the baseball in that mind-boggling outing and Ojala wants the ball as well, but if you are the parent of such a young man, how do you view the situation? After all, parents want their kids to succeed and if they're really talented, everyone begins thinking about Major League ball. How do you deal with it? Everyone else, such as myself, how do you view it?
Tim Melton
COLLAGE COACH ARENT WORRY ABOUT THE ARMS OF THESE BALL PLAYER ALL THEY WANT IS TO WIN AT ALL COST. BECAUSE IF THEY DON'T PREDUCE THE WILL GET FIRED. IT NOT ONLY IN COLLAGE IT IN HIGH SCHOOL ALSO.
Posted by: Henry Sanchez | June 06, 2009 at 07:52 PM
These kids choose to play and we have to remember that. We have to trust they have the judgement to say when they are worn out or hurt. Look at college football how many players play hurt week after week? They choose to, just hoping for the next level so they can make the BIG $$$$. College baseball would be same but not all will make the next level so this is their grand stage and they want to live every minute of it.
I am not saying that Auggie should have let him keep pitching and I am not saying that he should have pulled him. What I am saying is that sports are sports we as fans love them and players live them.
Posted by: ErnieandTracy | June 08, 2009 at 12:13 PM