Injury is part of the deal, particularly if he aspires to play beyond HS.  At some point, it seems, most lose a chunk of time to it.  When a player starts playing HS/travel ball, thus playing with a relatively high frequency, the odds go up.  So, if this is going to be his "turn" and he is motivated by it to condition and take care of his body, this actually isn't a bad time.  I assume he will have plenty of recovery time to be in great shape and ready to go for next HS season and then next travel season.  

Every situation is different.  For example, if he were on track as a high D1 recruit, the early timing becomes more problematic.  But, even so, no sense in looking back.  We speak often here about how baseball is such an exercise in overcoming adversity.  There will be many bumps in the road.  Figuring out how to attack and overcome them is crucial to survival and one of the best parts of the adventure (although I'm sure it is hard to see it that way at the moment).

Lastly, there are threads you can search here on OCD.  I don't recall the details and not sure this applies but make sure son is making any necessary adjustments to avoid recurrence. 

My youngest was banged up beginning of HS senior season while he was still uncommitted, having to play through injury and suffering a drop in performance.  Then, after overcoming and earning his way on to his first college roster, had a significant injury at the very end of fall, ending his first college year completely, missing the next nine months of playing and having to move to another school.  He is now entering his fourth (fifth, really) year of college ball.  The hurdles continue.

Thanks for the comments/advice CabbageDad!  Much appreciated.  If nothing else, he doesn't take anything for granted.  I will try and find the threads you mentioned.

Cambob, I added a paragraph of one of my sons' journeys... debated on whether to bore others who have heard it before but thought it might be particularly helpful to you/your son.   Yeah, figuring out early not to take things for granted and to be proactive is definitely another silver lining.

Hi - My son's situation is not exact, but has some similarities.  He suffered from growth plate issues in his shoulder for most of his 12U and 13U seasons.  He was able to play in spurts, but went from a SS/3B to a DH and sometimes 1B.

At 13 he took 6 months off from baseball and used the downtime to improve his running and overall athleticism.  Now at 14U he is a bit less polished than the top players, but his increased athleticism helps make up for it.  His arm strength is not an issue and he is back to pitching.  Probably the most tangible effect of the diminished and missed time is that he is late developing a breaking pitch, but that is coming along.  

Wish you the best.

cabbagedad posted:

Cambob, I added a paragraph of one of my sons' journeys... debated on whether to bore others who have heard it before but thought it might be particularly helpful to you/your son.   Yeah, figuring out early not to take things for granted and to be proactive is definitely another silver lining.

Thanks for adding that, sounds like he overcame plenty of adversity to get where he is.

K9 posted:

Hi - My son's situation is not exact, but has some similarities.  He suffered from growth plate issues in his shoulder for most of his 12U and 13U seasons.  He was able to play in spurts, but went from a SS/3B to a DH and sometimes 1B.

 

At 13 he took 6 months off from baseball and used the downtime to improve his running and overall athleticism.  Now at 14U he is a bit less polished than the top players, but his increased athleticism helps make up for it.  His arm strength is not an issue and he is back to pitching.  Probably the most tangible effect of the diminished and missed time is that he is late developing a breaking pitch, but that is coming along.  

Wish you the best.

Although the injury isn't the same, the situation is very similar. My son has been regulated to running for the catcher as a courtesy runner, he'll swipe some bases, take an extra base, etc. so he feels like he's contributing in a small way. Thanks for your post, and best of luck to your son.

Cambob, I am a mom of a 2020 so I'm hoping I have a closer take on this than some on here.  It is my OPINION you need to focus on healing the boy and not worry about the players future.

As we learned first hand from my son when he grows his swing gets off, when he grows his throw downs to second sometimes wind up in the center fielders glove because his arm got stronger/longer and he didn't know his own strength. At 14u everyone is still growing so if you are going to have to take a break now sounds like a great time.

The difference between 12u and 14u is huge, the difference between 16u and 18u is not as large.  Your son will have time to come back and he will not be behind long.  I can not stress enough that he needs to come back when HE IS 100% and not when he feels good enough to try and play again.  Not being 100% will only result in another injury and another setback.

CaCO3Girl posted:

Cambob, I am a mom of a 2020 so I'm hoping I have a closer take on this than some on here.  It is my OPINION you need to focus on healing the boy and not worry about the players future.

As we learned first hand from my son when he grows his swing gets off, when he grows his throw downs to second sometimes wind up in the center fielders glove because his arm got stronger/longer and he didn't know his own strength. At 14u everyone is still growing so if you are going to have to take a break now sounds like a great time.

The difference between 12u and 14u is huge, the difference between 16u and 18u is not as large.  Your son will have time to come back and he will not be behind long.  I can not stress enough that he needs to come back when HE IS 100% and not when he feels good enough to try and play again.  Not being 100% will only result in another injury and another setback.

Sage advice for sure, thank you.  We have been following doctors orders, and I agree with you 100%. Thanks again for responding with your feedback.

My son ended up missing his freshman spring and summer due to elbow issues.  In all honesty, it didn't make a difference career-wise.  If anything it may have actually been a benefit.

Because he couldn't throw, my son hit the gym hard and worked on those things he could do.  He became much stronger overall, and when he was able to get back to throwing - he threw much harder.

There certainly weren't any colleges sniffing around at that time, and those that have shown interest since have zero concern over what he did back then.  So, in that sense it made little difference.

In the scheme of things, it is way more important to be healthy before coming back - than to risk further injury.

He can look at it as a setback or an opportunity - whichever one he chooses will have a big impact on how things will be on the other side.

Rob T posted:

My son ended up missing his freshman spring and summer due to elbow issues.  In all honesty, it didn't make a difference career-wise.  If anything it may have actually been a benefit.

Because he couldn't throw, my son hit the gym hard and worked on those things he could do.  He became much stronger overall, and when he was able to get back to throwing - he threw much harder.

There certainly weren't any colleges sniffing around at that time, and those that have shown interest since have zero concern over what he did back then.  So, in that sense it made little difference.

In the scheme of things, it is way more important to be healthy before coming back - than to risk further injury.

He can look at it as a setback or an opportunity - whichever one he chooses will have a big impact on how things will be on the other side.

Thanks for the feedback Rob T.  Glad everything worked out for your son.

CAMBOB2020,

Not sure where your son might be currently, but I am also a 2020 grad myself (freshman in HS) and I had a very similar scenario. I was diagnosed with Osteochondritis Dissecans in early June of this year after receiving an MRI, but because it was particularly mild, I was allowed to go back to pitching again. Once the season passed, I realized it wasn't clever to go through with pitching even though I was told I had OCD because pain only amped up in my elbow near where doctors had originally seen the lesion. I went to another doctor recently to hopefully figure out what to do about the OCD, and to my shock, they ran an X-ray and found that the lesion had healed up. However, I still feel clicking and locking all the time. What they also found in my arm was a swollen UCL (Tommy John ligament), so I have now been shut down from pitching for a decent time. Hope your son turns out okay. OCD (and Tommy John) can really just be from overuse, so I'd recommend taking whatever precautions the doctor orders. Hopefully the offseason gives him some time to cool off. If I were you, I really wouldn't worry about fall ball unless he HAS to play. Another season of baseball just means an increased risk for an injury just like this one.

Dingerswag1223 posted:

CAMBOB2020,

Not sure where your son might be currently, but I am also a 2020 grad myself (freshman in HS) and I had a very similar scenario. I was diagnosed with Osteochondritis Dissecans in early June of this year after receiving an MRI, but because it was particularly mild, I was allowed to go back to pitching again. Once the season passed, I realized it wasn't clever to go through with pitching even though I was told I had OCD because pain only amped up in my elbow near where doctors had originally seen the lesion. I went to another doctor recently to hopefully figure out what to do about the OCD, and to my shock, they ran an X-ray and found that the lesion had healed up. However, I still feel clicking and locking all the time. What they also found in my arm was a swollen UCL (Tommy John ligament), so I have now been shut down from pitching for a decent time. Hope your son turns out okay. OCD (and Tommy John) can really just be from overuse, so I'd recommend taking whatever precautions the doctor orders. Hopefully the offseason gives him some time to cool off. If I were you, I really wouldn't worry about fall ball unless he HAS to play. Another season of baseball just means an increased risk for an injury just like this one.

Well it's interesting that you replied to this today.  My son is going for a second MRI today, the original injury occurred in late April and he missed the remainder of his HS season, as well as Summer traveling and Club Fall.  Needless to say it was a humbling and frustrating Spring, Summer and Fall.  I can tell you that after about 8 weeks from the original injury the pain was gone. The issue right now is he doesn't have full range of motion with the arm, and he does have a clicking in the elbow still.  The elbow doesn't lock on him though.  We have been seeing the Ortho every 6-8 weeks for follow-ups and he's just told to continue to rest. We are over 5 months into it so hearing the same thing over and over is frustrating.

Obviously the doctor doesn't want to do surgery unless he has to. I think it may be getting closer to that point now.  I'm thinking of going to a different doctor for another opinion. 

I hope everything works out for you.  Thanks for the reply and information regarding your circumstance.

Dingerswag1223 posted:

CAMBOB2020,

Not sure where your son might be currently, but I am also a 2020 grad myself (freshman in HS) and I had a very similar scenario. I was diagnosed with Osteochondritis Dissecans in early June of this year after receiving an MRI, but because it was particularly mild, I was allowed to go back to pitching again. Once the season passed, I realized it wasn't clever to go through with pitching even though I was told I had OCD because pain only amped up in my elbow near where doctors had originally seen the lesion. I went to another doctor recently to hopefully figure out what to do about the OCD, and to my shock, they ran an X-ray and found that the lesion had healed up. However, I still feel clicking and locking all the time. What they also found in my arm was a swollen UCL (Tommy John ligament), so I have now been shut down from pitching for a decent time. Hope your son turns out okay. OCD (and Tommy John) can really just be from overuse, so I'd recommend taking whatever precautions the doctor orders. Hopefully the offseason gives him some time to cool off. If I were you, I really wouldn't worry about fall ball unless he HAS to play. Another season of baseball just means an increased risk for an injury just like this one.

Dingerswag- Nothing in your post would lead me to believe that you're a 2020. Okay, may your username. LoL

Seriously though, you sound like a mature and intelligent young man. I wish you the best in the classroom and on the field in the future. 

hshuler posted:

Dingerswag1223 posted:

CAMBOB2020,

Not sure where your son might be currently, but I am also a 2020 grad myself (freshman in HS) and I had a very similar scenario. I was diagnosed with Osteochondritis Dissecans in early June of this year after receiving an MRI, but because it was particularly mild, I was allowed to go back to pitching again. Once the season passed, I realized it wasn't clever to go through with pitching even though I was told I had OCD because pain only amped up in my elbow near where doctors had originally seen the lesion. I went to another doctor recently to hopefully figure out what to do about the OCD, and to my shock, they ran an X-ray and found that the lesion had healed up. However, I still feel clicking and locking all the time. What they also found in my arm was a swollen UCL (Tommy John ligament), so I have now been shut down from pitching for a decent time. Hope your son turns out okay. OCD (and Tommy John) can really just be from overuse, so I'd recommend taking whatever precautions the doctor orders. Hopefully the offseason gives him some time to cool off. If I were you, I really wouldn't worry about fall ball unless he HAS to play. Another season of baseball just means an increased risk for an injury just like this one.

Dingerswag- Nothing in your post would lead me to believe that you're a 2020. Okay, may your username. LoL

Seriously though, you sound like a mature and intelligent young man. I wish you the best in the classroom and on the field in the future. 

I'm in agreement with you hshuler... who's playing who...

My son was diagnosed with elbow OCD in May.  Generally elbow OCD symptoms including clicking noises in the elbow, decreased range of motion, severe pain, and swelling.  My 12 year old son (now 13) had ZERO of these symptoms until he pitched a game on 5/21.  He started the game and on the 2nd batter in the 4th inning he felt something in his elbow.  He came out of the game and the next day he had swelling in his elbow.  We took him into the dr. who did an Xray and found nothing out of the ordinary but scheduled a precautionary MRI.  During the MRI they found a piece of loose cartilage in his elbow.  

We visited the UW surgeon who described the procedure - arthroscopy to remove the fragment, debridement to prep the area, and micro drilling to regrow the cartilage.  Our son was allowed to hit until the surgery.   Because my son was asymptomic, we were able to get with Dr. Raasch, the Milwaukee Brewers surgeon for a 2nd opinion.  He gave us the same prescription as our first doctor as well as allowing for hitting.  So my son became a DH for the remainder of the 2016 season.

Surgery on 8/31 went very well.  He was in a brace for 10 days and started PT on 9/9.  The current plan is 4-6 weeks of range of motion PT (almost done), 4-6 weeks of strengthening PT, and a final visit with surgeon on 11/11.  After that it is 4 weeks of light throwing working from 10 feet to 90 feet and then back to UW for a pitching rehab program.  During that same 4 weeks he will start hitting with a week of wiffle balls off a tee, then a week of tennis balls, then a week of baseballs, then a week of front toss, and then BP.

All in all he will have been out of the field for 11 months.  My advice is REALLY adhere to the rehab program and do not try to push beyond it.  Time goes by pretty quick.

Thanks Hshuler! I appreciate it. Yes, my original username was something I used on social media when I was 10-12, but since I wouldn't want my actual name out here, this was all I could think of. Haha. Thank you! School always comes in front of sports regarding my priorities.

Dingerswag1223 posted:

Thanks Hshuler! I appreciate it. Yes, my original username was something I used on social media when I was 10-12, but since I wouldn't want my actual name out here, this was all I could think of. Haha. Thank you! School always comes in front of sports regarding my priorities.

Best wishes, my young friend!

CamBob/Musky - Best wishes to your boys on full and speedy recoveries!

is  he not going to therapy?  My son has similar issue (2020 RHP) and is sitting this fall out.  He will begin 8 weeks of therapy two times per week.  Hoping that is all he needs.  His orthopedic dr says he is too young for tommy john surgery (14).  He can throw mid 80's consistently.  Hoping this therapy helps him and heals him and he comes back even stronger