My concerns regarding Mulder were well founded after reports he
couldn’t even lift his pitching arm up to his shoulder earlier this week.
The diagnosis is (1) shoulder impingement (2) inflammation of the rotator cuff
slight fraying of the rotator cuff.
The Cardinals placed him on the
15-day DL and indicated they believe he won’t need surgery. The Cardinals will
shut him down for a week then re-evaluate him. The treatment plan is
anti-inflammatory medical and rest for at least a week. The fraying of the
rotator cuff (or labrum as was mentioned in
the news conference) isn’t of
concern to the medical staff. The medical staff believes it is just normal wear
and tear. The impingement; the pinching of a tendon of the rotator cuff is
usually due to muscle weakness in the shoulder. The plan of action is to reduce
the inflammation, build up the shoulder strength, and then get him back on a
pitching mound.
Conclusion: It sounds like he’s avoided surgery for the time being.
When he returns to throwing after the rest period and treatment, the surgery
talk could surface again if the pain is still present. The best-case scenario
has Mulder resuming exercise and long tossing early in July and returning in
late July or early August. Even if he does return quickly (unlikely), the odds
are against him that he’ll productive the rest of the season. Worst-case
scenario has Mulder undergoing surgery and being lost for the year.
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