Bad news for Erbe - torn labrum - per Melewski

[csgordos]

Also, pretty much every pitcher in the ML or in the world for that matter has small tears in the labrum. I guess it depends on where the tear(s) is and how bad of a tear it is.

At the release point the force of throwing a baseball is so great that it can cause a subluxation (a minor version of a dislocation) of the humeral head away from the glenoid (which the labrum lines like the meniscus in the knee). When the humeral head is slammed back into the glenoid it can catch the labrum causing a tear. When the scapular stabilizers and Rotator cuff are not working at optimal function you have a greater chance of an injury happening to the labrum. It is just a matter of time with most pitchers. The bigger questions will be, where was the tear at, how large was it, and how will the pitchers mechanics stress out the injured area(s).

Pitching and health of the shoulder is a relative crapshoot and no it is not just the Orioles pitchers dealing with these issues. Add to it a injury history and the odds get longer and longer. Not that pitcher will not return to health, but the UCL (Tommy John) recovery is typically an easier recovery and more projectable than a labral repair.

This is the reason why you need a large quantity of quality young arms so that there is a greater chance of some reaching their true potential for the MLB team.