Sunday, May 19, 2013
When Peter Gammons reported in June that John Lackey might need Tommy John surgery, Lackey was quoted to say "he straight made that up."
When Lackey was asked at the time if there was a discussion about having Tommy John surgery, Lackey snapped back: "You guys are brutal. No, there hasn't been."
After a brutal season put in by Lackey, both on and off the field, the truth has finally come out.
This guy should have been shelved months ago and Boston should have been more aggressive in finding some patchwork pitching to save the 2011 season.
Lackey, as it was announced Tuesday, will undergo Tommy John surgery this off-season and will miss 2012.
But the problem was detected in May. Lackey was put on the disabled list back then. He came back and was 7-3 in his first 10 games (although a 4.97 ERA suggested that Lackey received favorable offensive support). He had a 6.75 ERA the rest of the way.
When new general manager Ben Cherington announced that Lackey was going under the knife, he admitted that Lackey's latest MRI was similar to the one taken in May.
If the test results in May showed there was a problem, did the Red Sox really rely on Lackey "gutting it out" for the rest of the season?
Surely, there was a better option.
Maybe Lackey kept telling the Red Sox he felt fine. Why would they believe him?
Well, Lackey can't be traded now. I don't wish an injury on anyone, but not having John Lackey around in 2012 may do the Red Sox (and Lackey) some good..
Kevin Thomas covers baseball and basketball for the Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram. He wisely moved to Maine in 1994 after working for the St. Petersburg Times. He is married to Nancy and they have nine children.
Follow his thoughts on the Boston Red Sox and Portland Sea Dogs on Clearing the Bases
Follow his thoughts on the Boston Celtics and Maine Red Claws on Holding Court
Subscribe to the
Holding Court RSS
Subscribe to the
Clearing the Bases RSS
More
Copyright ©2013 MaineToday Media, Inc.
Jobs
Cars
Real Estate
Maine Yellow Pages
Facebook
Twitter