Remember to do no harm.... always

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Last weekend I witnessed the worst possible coaching decision that I have seen in some 15 years.

In a Saturday 18U pool play the game was tied 5-5 in the 5th. The opposing team changed pitchers and this girl was lights out. Stuck out all of our 3 batters, had to be throwing in the low 60's with movement and control. On our last batter's third strike their pitcher went down in a heap and laid on the ground clutching her leg. Our third base coach heard a 'pop'. The girl was eventually helped from the field by her two coaches with an arm over each and no weight on her injured leg. She told them she heard a 'pop'. Her team went up a couple runs while she sat on the sidelines with ice on her knee. She walked out without much apparent pain and no visible limp. She then threw her one warm-up pitch and collapsed once again... (repeat the previous scenario). She was later diagnosed with an ACL tear.

This kid was a D-1 prospect, carried her high school team to a state playoff appreance and had the world by the tail. Her travel-ball coaches put her entire career and her health in jeopardy by sending her back out. They should have known that a 'pop' from the knee is not to be taken lightly, was likely an ACL and was beyond their ability to judge the severity of the injury. If the player/parents insisted, they should have tested her on the sidelines and at half speed with support. Additional damage could have been done. They were focused on wining a meaningless pool game on some dusty country field and not on the health and well being of this child.

It was selfish and unbelievably stupid to put this kid back out on the mound. I am still upset by their actions.

 

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I would prefer to assume lack of knowledge than selfish behavior. Stupid does seem to apply......
I think many coaches struggle with the concept of pain verses injured.
At what point do you ask a kid to push through pain????
Realize I agree with you. Loud popping noises are NEVER good. And need to be investigated by proper professionals before moving forward.
Also realize you state she "was" a D1 prospect............ACLs are put back together like new all the time. Lots of running backs with blown ACLs in the league.

 

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Don't know all the specifics but I have witnessed many more parents pushing the kid to get back on the field after a situation like this than coaches. (if the parents were there). As well ACL injuries are almost always tougher for female athletes to recover from close to 100% than males

 

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An ACL Injury is a long and difficult climb back, typically over a year before they can begin to think about training without restrictions. This is a life-time to a college freshman and a pitcher on top of that. She has certainly lost one spring season, her scholarship prospects are in jeopardy and then there is the question of a more permanent injury and that she never returns to her previous dominance.

You may be right about a player's parents pushing her back on the field but at some point someone needs to step up and just be an adult.

Check this book out for more information
Warrior Girls: Protecting Our Daughters Against the Injury Epidemic in Women's Sports

 

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We experienced something similar in HS ball although not as serious as an ACL, but it was bad enough. My DD, 14 at the time. had pulled her groin muscle. Wanted to pitch extremely bad against an OCC team. We were in the City League. Sports Dr. told her not to play for 2 weeks and then she'd be re-evaluated. At this OCC game, she told "coach" that she was fine so "coach" listened to the 14 year old instead of her parents (we were late because we knew she wouldn't be pitching) or the sports doctor and put her in to start the game. She pitched one great inning and had to be carried off the field and was out until the sectional game. That was about 3 weeks later. Had the coach listened to the parents and the doctor, she would've been able to finish her season that year. Coaches need to think about the health of their players and not whether or not they can win a game. I know it's hard sometimes because coaches want to win, but some things just aren't worth the win.

Last weekend I witnessed the worst possible coaching decision that I have seen in some 15 years.

In a Saturday 18U pool play the game was tied 5-5 in the 5th. The opposing team changed pitchers and this girl was lights out. Stuck out all of our 3 batters, had to be throwing in the low 60's with movement and control. On our last batter's third strike their pitcher went down in a heap and laid on the ground clutching her leg. Our third base coach heard a 'pop'. The girl was eventually helped from the field by her two coaches with an arm over each and no weight on her injured leg. She told them she heard a 'pop'. Her team went up a couple runs while she sat on the sidelines with ice on her knee. She walked out without much apparent pain and no visible limp. She then threw her one warm-up pitch and collapsed once again... (repeat the previous scenario). She was later diagnosed with an ACL tear.

This kid was a D-1 prospect, carried her high school team to a state playoff appreance and had the world by the tail. Her travel-ball coaches put her entire career and her health in jeopardy by sending her back out. They should have known that a 'pop' from the knee is not to be taken lightly, was likely an ACL and was beyond their ability to judge the severity of the injury. If the player/parents insisted, they should have tested her on the sidelines and at half speed with support. Additional damage could have been done. They were focused on wining a meaningless pool game on some dusty country field and not on the health and well being of this child.

It was selfish and unbelievably stupid to put this kid back out on the mound. I am still upset by their actions.

 

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My DD tore her ACL. At least a year rehab and after 2 years it still bothers her. This year will be her 3rd year from it.

Would not wish that on any athlete



Straightleg

 

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Injuries scare the cr@p out of me!! If a girl collapsed on the field and her knee popped loud enough for people on the sides to hear, I wouldn't give 2 sh!ts what her parents said...I would not allow her to go back on the field. That is just common sense. Even if she was my only pitcher.

 

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My dd tore her ACL. The first emotion I went through was a sort of denial..."maybe she just twisted it" or "it popped out and immediately popped back in". Now I would have never even considered having her try to play through it, the screaming probably played a part in that, and it was straight to the ER with her, but I do admit to praying all the way up to the MRI that it would be something other than an ACL. "Maybe it will start feeling better tomorrow".

I think that emotion is probably understandable for a parent. However, a coach needs to be level-headed enough to assume worst-case scenario until proven otherwise. Even when it concerns a 62mph fire-baller with movement and control. Especially with the knee and the head (in the case of concussions). As much as you don't want to face it, a strong coach makes the safe call, even if it loses the game. These are the coaches that players and parents truly admire, the ones that put the kids above the hardware. Not being there, I'd only speculate that the coach was probably going through some sort of the same denial emotion that I went through. He let it cloud his judgement. I can't see how anybody with a clear head would put a kid out there knowing that he's going risk the kid's safety or at best look selfish later on.

If she is a D1 prospect, it probably isn't the worst time for this to happen with regard to next season. I don't think recovery takes as long as a year for many cases any more. Especially with the hamstring method of reconstruction (rather than cadaver). My DD hurt hers in December, had surgery in January, started rehab two weeks later, and was tested and medically cleared in June. She was treated by the head of pediatric orthopedics who really knew her stuff. She wore a knee brace for a year post-op and has never complained of pain (complained about the brace getting in her way, but oh well).

If this young lady gets surgery in July and rehabs with the level of commitment we'd usually see in a pitcher of her caliber, it's very possible for her to be back next Spring.

 

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Agree with mmich on the timing issue. We had two catchers go down with ACL tears in the past year, one in September and one in January. The September injury resulted in medical clearance to play prior to the HS season (I think it was the second week of March) and it looks as though the January injury may receive medical clearance sometime during the first two weeks of July. We've been extremely pleased with the play and condition of the player who had the September injury and we are getting good reports on the condition of the second player. Both these young ladies had their operations done by the same surgeon, who came highly recommended.