Causes of finger numbness while pitching – Josh Beckett

Josh Beckett has had a successful career as a major league pitcher, but it might be coming to an end. In his career, Josh won the following:

  1. Three time all star
  2. Two World Series championships
  3. One ALCS MVP
  4. One World Series MVP

He is a great talent, but news broke that he is experiencing finger numbness that has him very concerned:

Any time something like that happens to your arm or you start losing feeling and stuff … you think about it for sure. I don’t really want to think like that right now. I want to think about figuring out a way to deal with this.

Causes of Finger Numbness

There are a number of causes that pitchers find:

Hand infections in baseball – Hanley Ramirez

Most of the time I cringe when I hear about sports injuries, but not the case with Hanley Ramirez. He was held out of the lineup on July 21, 2012 due to … wait for it … an infection in his hand. What made this funny?

He forgot to take his antibiotic.

Seriously. A major league player. His manager, Ozzie Guillen, agrees:

It’s pretty infected. I was kind of worried about it. Hopefully the infection comes out pretty soon. I don’t think he was taking his pills then all of a sudden it (swelled) up. I don’t think it’s a big deal but we have got to prevent (it from becoming) a big deal. (It) was pretty ugly and pretty sensitive. Hopefully the doctor will find exactly what he needs and make sure baby Hanley takes (it). I will every night ‘open your mouth’ and put it in his mouth. How do you forget to take a pill that the doctors (tells) to take?

How to avoid chronic thumb injuries – Dustin Pedroia

Dustin Pedroia is back in the Red Sox lineup after suffering his second thumb injury of the season. This got me thinking about what you can do to avoid chronic thumb injuries.

What are chronic thumb injuries

Chronic injuries of any kind are ones that happen over and over or are conditions that never seem to resolve. This is an important part of understanding how quickly you can come back from an injury.

In terms of the thumb, a chronic injury can manifest itself in three primary ways:

  1. Inflammation
  2. Loss of strength
  3. Pain

How to avoid chronic thumb injuries - Dustin Pedroia PhotoRegardless of the injury, broken, strained, torn, if you continue to have the above symptoms you might suffer from a chronic thumb injury. Only a doctor can help you determine if you have a chronic injury, but it is good to know the following before you go to see them:

What is the difference betweem achilles tendonitis and tendinosis – David Ortiz

In the past we’ve discussed the achilles tendon and the various problems with it such as achilles tendon tear treatments. I learned something today while looking up David Ortiz’s latest injury, which is achilles tendon based. I say based since there was confusion as to what the specific injury was at the time. A second opinion agreed with the first that it wasn’t torn.

This is a good thing for Ortiz and a bad thing for the Red Sox. Ortiz won’t have a horrendous road back like Ryan Howard did after his tear, but the Red Sox lose Ortiz for 15 days.

What caught my eye in the report was this from manager, Bobby Valentine:

He has a right strained heel, Achilles’ attachment type thing. It’s something he’s had before.

How do you know what part of your lat is hurt – Andrew Cashner

The San Diego Padres starting pitcher, Andrew Cashner, hurt a lat in one of his starts. The lat is the Latissimus Dorsi and it is two large muscles in the back. It runs from under the shoulder blade to the waist. He hurt it while pitching, which is understandable since it is used extensively in baseball.

Cashner said of the injury:

I felt a little grab and then the third pitch, it grabbed even worse. It’s definitely sore right now.

This is understandable given the size of the muscles and their use in pitching.

 

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What I found fascinating is that the medical staff of the Padres were able to tell exactly what part of the muscle was hurt. Padres manager Bud Black said:

How to treat a jammed thumb – Dustin Pedroia

Dustin Pedroia is the fancy fielding second baseman of the Boston Red Sox. He’s had a pretty good 2012 season, but he might be sidetracked due to a jammed thumb. He jammed the thumb during a game against the Oakland A’s on a pop out to short right field. This usually wouldn’t be news, but he is still recovering from a torn muscle in his thumb earlier in the season.

He doesn’t know what is going on:

It’s pretty frustrating. I have a high pain tolerance, but I don’t know.

What is a jammed thumb

A jammed thumb is when a digit, the thumb, is forced into the joint through blunt trauma. In this case, Justin must have landed on his hand and pushed the thumb into his hand. It is as simple as that. You literally force the digit into the joint.

Treat pulled adductor muscle strain – CC Sabathia

CC Sabathia isn’t known for his physical conditioning. His official weight is listed at 290 pounds, but he probably tips the scales higher than that. He is now on the disabled list due to a adductor muscle strain.

What is the adductor muscle

The adductor muscle is a set of muscles in your inner thigh that control your ability to squeeze your legs together. They’re involved in your hip movement, too. Part of the muscle group reaches down into your knee.

How do you hurt your adductor muscle

Commonly you pull your adductor by over stretching your legs. You can also put considerable strain on them if you push off against a great weight or force while beginning to move. The pain is felt in the groin region and sometimes extends into the upper hips during twists and motion.

How long does it take to rehab a elbow flexor – Philip Humber

Phillip Humber pitched a perfect game earlier year, but now he finds himself on the disabled list with an elbow issue. The exact issue is an elbow flexor strain, which is a common injury for pitchers.

As he said of the elbow issue:

It’s hard to say when it happened because I have a high pain tolerance. It’s something that’s gotten gradually worse. I felt I had to say something. It’s not what you want, but our training staff is good, and we’ll work and get back as quick as I can. The good news is I can play catch. Based on how I feel and how it goes, I’ll get back on the mound, throw some side sessions, maybe a rehab assignment. I don’t know when, but hopefully soon.

How do you use your groin in basketball – Kendrick Perkins

Kendrick Perkins is one tough dude. His career has spanned three teams, but he has very rarely missed significant time due to injury. He is a calming influence on the Oklahoma City Thunder bench and provides leadership the younger team needs.

News reports came out after the 2012 NBA Championship that he had played with a torn groin during the finals. Ouch.

How do you use your groin in basketball - Kendrick Perkins Photo

We’ve covered how to treat a pulled groin and the facts remain the same. The groin is where your torso meets your legs and serves a very important purpose for mobility and activity.

In basketball, the groin is relied on for:

  • Jumping
  • Running
  • Stopping
  • Cutting
  • Lateral movement
  • Shooting

Pretty much everything.

How to treat soreness in triceps – Mariano Rivera

how-to-treat-soreness-in-triceps-mariano-rivera-photoMariano Rivera is probably the greatest reliever to ever play baseball, but he isn’t immune to injury, especially as he grows older. He’s now 41 years old and has 17 seasons of professional baseball under his belt. Selected to play in the 2011 all star game, Rivera had to bow out due to triceps issues.

As he said about missing the game:

The reason why is because I want to make sure I’m 100 percent. I won’t be able to give what the team will ask me.

The interesting thing is that the Yankees have attributed the soreness in his triceps to inflammation as opposed to a strain. The difference being that with a strain you’ll have tearing of the muscle fibers whereas inflammation could just be irritation of the muscle fibers.