As the season heats up — or cools down, for some teams — career longevity becomes a point of concern. Over the last week, it was revealed that two young pitching prospects, Shohei Ohtani and Michael Kopeck of the Angels and White Sox, have substantial UCL tears in their elbows that will require surgical repair.
The UCL is the ulnar collateral ligament in the elbow. The UCL is responsible for stabilizing the elbow, which is especially important when throwing 90+ mph or throwing 90+ pitches every five days. Fortunately for pitchers, there is a operation named “Tommy John” that has seemed to be a miracle surgery of sorts, as many pitchers have done the surgery and never had a UCL issue again in their career.