Did The Twins Know Matt Garza Was Injured?
Tampa Bay Rays Pitcher Matt Garza was placed on the 15 day disabled list today with radial nerve irritation in his right arm. Garza came out of the Rays game against Seattle last night in the third inning with two outs. After walking Jose Vidro in 5 pitches Garza motioned to the dugout for a trainer and then came out of the game. Garza threw 70 pitches in his 2 plus innings with 6 hits, 3 eared runs, 3 base on balls and 2 strikeouts.
Brittany Ghiroli of MLB.com wrote:
While Rays manager Joe Maddon said he had no prior knowledge of the injury, Garza told the media following the game that the problem surfaced late last year. "It’s been gradually hurting, but I’ve fought it off," Garza said.
An AP story appearing on CBS Sports quoted Matt Garza as saying:
"We’re going to take our time," Garza said. "It’s something I’ve dealt with over time, but I was able to fight through it. (It started) more towards late last year. It got to the point where, I’ve got to get looked at and see what’s going on. It was like somebody was pressing down on my arm."
So did the Twins get away one here and unload an injured Matt Garza to the Rays? It sure seems like Garza knew he had problems. Who knows what the Twins knew but my guess is this Twins didn’t know about this. Young pitchers often don’t say anything about soreness they are experiencing because they are unsure of what are feeling and don’t want to be complain about something they can maybe work through when fighting for a job.
Only time will tell of this is something serious for Garza or if he will bounce back with no effects of it. Last spring Garza complained of headaches and neck pain but only missed 5 or 6 days and then was available all season.
In other notes Joe Christensen reported on Francisco Liriano’s shaky start for Rochester yesterday. Liriano threw 88 pitches in four innings and gave up three runs with 6 hits, 3 walks and 3 strikeouts. People are speculating on whether Liriano will take Slowey’s spot in the rotation if Slowey is unable to go because of a sore bicep. With this recent outing of Francisco’s, it appears he is better off staying in Rochester for a few more starts. Maybe Brian Bass can make the start for the Twins if need be.
Tags: , francisco liriano, matt garza
April 9th, 2008 at 7:41 pm
Wow…too bad for Garza. I was really a big fan of his and sorry to see him leave Minnesota.
If it turns into something serious that’s also really bad luck for Tampa Bay, who finally seem like they’re starting to head in the right direction as an organization.
April 9th, 2008 at 7:58 pm
Yeah, that’s a bummer for Garza and the Rays. I hope it turns out to be nothing more than a 15 day stint on the DL. You never want to see a guy go down to injury and you always want to play a team at their best. I wish Garza and the Rays the best, they have a young and exciting team.
April 9th, 2008 at 9:32 pm
Tonight Kelly Thesier wrote that Ron Gardenhire said the Twins knew nothing about Garza’s claimed injuries from last year.
Will this story have legs? Or will this be the end of it?
April 9th, 2008 at 9:49 pm
I’m not sure about how one detects medical problems but wouldn’t this have come up in reviewing medical reports from last season and doing a physical after the trade? In any case, that trade worked out pretty well for us tonight with Harris and Young putting up some solid ABs.
April 9th, 2008 at 9:57 pm
Sounds like this is something Garza kept to himself so nothing was documented. I don’t know how extensive a physical is for these guys if they appear to be in good health. Do they do MRI’s and scans of every part of a guy just to make sure? If this is a nerve thing that comes and goes, I don’t know how they could find such a thing.
Thanks for stopping by WV!
April 9th, 2008 at 10:58 pm
Yeah, an inflamed nerve seems like something difficult to detect. It also doesn’t seem that serious, but again, I’m a grad student in literature and can barely balance my checkbook, let alone make an educated guess on the workings of modern medicine.
Cool post though. Garza’s 8ER in 8IP is making us look good in any event.