It is so easy for a pitcher to rule numbness and “tingles” throughout their arm as just the offshoot symptoms of a “dead arm” syndrome. His team could also push off the discomfort and pain towards that same side of the coin, and just let a pitcher works his way out of the situation. But I want to take the time to commend both the Rays Medical Staff and Rays Manager Joe Maddon and his crew in their swift and concise decision making process concerning rookie pitcher Alex Cobb.
Cobb is a budding, talented young pitcher who could have easily tried to hide his condition on Saturday night in fear of losing his place in the rotation, or possibly again being demoted back to the minors. Cobb could have taken the path of deception and the condition could have escalated or gotten worse until damage was irreversible and either surgery or shutting him down for the season was the only solution. In this case, honesty might have been the perfect course of action, and saved more than just his pitching career.
Some could say the play during the game where he had to come over and cover First Base on a bunt single by the A’s Coco Crisp could have been the precursor to this aliment coming to the surface. A blunt motion or force upon his right arm could have jarred the symptoms, or possibly brought to light a potential hazard in waiting. But that is just conjecture until the final medical reports ate filed.
Sure we might not know the extent or cause of Cobb’s arm numbness or sensations yet, but if the Rays learned anything from the Rocco Baldelli situation, it is to take nothing for granted. Sometimes a simple diagnosis would be the perfect solution, but the problem could still be there hiding, waiting for another chance to spring up and cause more havoc for Cobb in the future. By being concise and precise, the Rays could eliminate mirror image symptoms that occur within our own bodies.
But this story has a double dose of goodness to it too. Cobb by revealing the “numbness” in his arm to the Rays Head Trainer Ron Porterfield and Maddon, it put into motion an immediate plan to try and decipher the symptoms and get conclusive answers towards solving Cobb’s discomfort. Cobb trusted the Rays medical machine to help eliminate this tingling sensation and not put off either time or progression to solving the body mystery.
Because it is Cobb’s pitching hand, the Rays took swift and detailed actions to protect one of their budding pitching gems. Cobb never looked like he could establish a consistent rhythm on the mound on Saturday night, and possibly the “needles and pins” sensation might have shown up early in the night. Not going to blame the numbness, but unless Cobb was tipping off his fastball, the Oakland A’s just seemed to fest on it Saturday night.
Still, it was great to see Cobb say something before the matter could have escalated towards a potentially long term injury. Huge praise seriously has to go towards the Rays Medical staff for their due diligence and process of eliminating and evaluating towards finding a cause or effect of the problem.
Pitchers have a limited shelf life normally in baseball. Good news came swiftly after Porterfield sent Cobb to a local hospital for some more detailed blood tests. Soon afterwards it was learned that Cobb did not have a possible blood clot in his arm, which could have been a immediate cause of the numbness. There might be a battery of medical tests in Cobb’s future, but possibly this honest gesture might just be life saving.
Even thought the Rays have put Cobb on the DL, this move could prolong and help discover a possible aliment that is beginning to develop within Cobb. The result could be many more wins, and a long career. It is still amazing to be the torque and pounds per square inch a pitcher puts on his joints and muscles nightly throwing in Major League Baseball.
Injuries happen in a sport where a pitcher throws so much torque and pressure on their pitching arms nightly. By Cobb being upfront and telling the Rays about his discomfort, it might have been a precursor to more Rays wins, and a longer career. Sometime each of us hide small aliments or nicks and pain from our employers, hoping they will just simply go away.
Cobb was in tune with his body’ enough to know something did not add up, and asked for help before it could of escalated or become a more complex problem. It is a great example of a player trusting his gut, and a team listening and help solve a potential setback. Kudos again to Cobb and the Rays staff for both doing the right thing. Hopefully this is just something minor, but if it is not, then it could save more than just Cobb’s career…it could save his life.
Rays Renegade 