Marlins right-hander Sandy Alcantara was placed on the injured list a week ago, with his injury described at that time as a right forearm flexor strain. Manager Skip Schumaker today told Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald that an MRI revealed Alcantara has a sprain of his ulnar collateral ligament. It seems the club hasn’t ruled out a return this season from the righty, who played catch today, per McPherson. “Watching him throw is a good thing,” Schumaker said. “It’s a progression. We’re going to watch it every day and go from there.”
The club hasn’t announced the severity of the sprain, though the fact that they are holding out hope of him returning later this year perhaps indicates it is on the mild side. A sprain of the UCL can be a precursor to an extremely significant result like Tommy John surgery, though not in all cases. Phillies prospect Andrew Painter was diagnosed with a UCL sprain earlier this year and did ultimately require Tommy John, though Mason Miller of the Athletics was diagnosed with a mild UCL sprain in May and returned to the A’s about four months later.
It seems that a lot is still to be determined about the steps forward. Earlier today, a report at the Herald from McPherson, Craig Mish and Barry Jackson relayed that the next steps are still being worked out. Alcantara is now apparently pain-free and could return to the club in a week if that continues to be the case. But there’s also another path wherein he would be shut down for four to six weeks and then re-evaluated in October.
It’s difficult to overstate the importance of a pitcher like Alcantara to the Marlins, even though his results have taken a step back from last year’s. He was crowned with the National League Cy Young award after posting a 2.28 earned run average over 228 2/3 innings in 2022. His ERA has ticked up to 4.14 this year, though he’s largely gotten back on track after a rough start, registering a 3.04 ERA since July 3.
In spite of Alcantara not quite being his most dominant self this year, the Marlins are having one of their best seasons in years. They are currently 74-71, putting them a game and a half back of a Wild Card spot in the National League. The last time the Marlins made the playoffs in a full season was 20 years ago, back in 2003.
Without Alcantara, the club’s rotation currently consists of Jesús Luzardo, Edward Cabrera, Eury Pérez, Braxton Garrett and Johnny Cueto. There’s a lot of upside in that group but it would naturally be even better with a healthy and effective Alcantara in the mix.
More information will surely be revealed in the weeks to come, with a wide range of outcomes seemingly possible, from Alcantara returning in a week to him being shut down for the year.
I hope he heals ok.
I would not be thrilled about bringing him back this year if I was a Marlins fan.
Pitching caused a mild sprain (I’m guessing it is mild) so let’s have him do more!
Marlins should shut him down for the year. They aren’t winning it all this year and need him for the future.
They ruined Sixto by trying to rush him back and now they might be doing it again marlins fans should be heated. (I get Sixto was a shoulder injury but point stands with the way they’ve handled it)
Sixto was already overweight and injury prone, and undersized, when they traded for him, when he was in Philly. They gave him plenty of time. They didnt rush him back from anything. He just threw an inning for the first time in 3 years. Shoulder injuries aren’t so easy. That isnt the team, as much as they deserve blame for a lot, including trading for him to begin with, you cant blame them for that
That doesn’t sound good.
I’m not a doc, but a sprain is still a tear just not as severe. It is still something to be concerned about
Letting him throw at this point seems like a borderline insane decision. Even though they have won a couple of World Series from the wildcard position letting Alcantara try to come back for a potential playoff push is not something worth the risk in my opinion.
This makes no sense. If he has a sprain, that’s a small tear and there’s no way he should be throwing. Something’s not right. They should not be making that judgment on whether he feels pain or not.
Yes and yes to scruffmcgruff. Awful break for him and Marlins, but risk your ace for a few more innings this season?
See you in a couple of years champ
Someone explain why current pitchers face more Tommy John than those in the 80s and 90s even they used to pitch a lot more innings (like Nolan’s 300) than present pitchers. Convince us.
To me, the reason is that, while pitchers are physically stronger with all of the gym work, their arms are not as strongly durable because to buid arms strength, you have to throw. Pitchers in the past built their arms through throwing more. Ever since the pitch count obsession thing, pitchers arms have been falling apart. Essentially, it’s like working out, but restricting yourself. Of course you’ll get hurt when you do the act that you were restricting your strength-building in.
I would not be in a rush to bring Sandy back. this year. The Marlins are a long shot at winning it all, even if they make the playoffs. Let Sandy get healthy for the next few years after we try building on this one.
Ariana, it’s a status thing…you know how everyone is all “name brand” these days, well for a pitcher “Tommy John” is a name brand that speaks for itself !!!!! Every pitcher is eventually gonna want one!
(1) pitchers today do not build up the same muscles, or build them up in the same way, as happened in the 70s / 80s. when I was a kid, I did all the manual work—rake the leaves, shovel the snow, clean the gutters, everything. Now, we hire help to do that work or there’s a mechanical beast to help us. A snow blower to blow the snow and a leaf blower to blow the leaves away.
(2) players, throw max effort at a young age to impress coaches. The big numbers to get the attention of scouts. They get you drafted higher. And they get you to the majors faster. you also throw more complicated pitches from a younger age. You do not give yourself time to grow into adulthood and become a man. You become a man at an early age when your body isn’t ready.
(3) food has changed. there are also so many sports supplements that are legal but didn’t exist in the 70s and 80s. You’re not taking in natural food into your body.
(4) I would imagine the pressure gets to players too. They don’t want to fail so they push a little harder, throw a little faster, exert a little more, and never speak up when they’re feeling something off because they don’t want to come out of the game.
(5) we live in a seated culture today. You don’t walk up the street to talk to someone you send them a text message. how often do you have neighbors show up at your front door? how often do you show up at your neighbors door? For me it’s never for both. being active and moving around is much more important to maintaining a healthy lifestyle. I do not know enough about injuries and the cause of them but if your legs are tired, you use more arm to make up for it. Maybe those things are the result of not moving around enough as a child or a young adult— you have physical endurance, but not in the right ways
Society has changed in many ways, and these changes have not been helpful, in my opinion, to the long-term health of pitchers.
My guess. Increase in intensity. In both performance and preparation. The scientists have them on the edge of their bodies limits more often. The riches on offer has them happy to oblige.
Imaging tech would also play a role with ligaments. Can see much much more fine detail on a modern day MRI than the 90s. Seeing more.
Tommy John was not a common place surgery until the 1990s. The 1st was 1974. The 10th was John Tudor in 1988.
In the 1980s pitchers average far less time in the league. Instead of having surgery they just retired.
Things that make ya go Hmmmmmm…
In the 80’s, if you blew out your UCL, you retired. Your career was over. Next question.
Alcantara is a ace and shouldn’t be rushed back. This Marlins team is not good enough to win the World Series and they were extremely lucky early in the season. Best to save Sandy for the future.
Please let him sit the rest of the year out Marlins. He is fun to watch pitch and would prefer to get to do that for years to come, not have him sit out the next season plus because he came back to soon and had to get TJ done.
Pitch clock strikes again