What exactly is tommy john surgery?

It is why it is so so important to pay attention to the coaches of your children playing baseball. There are certain techniques that developing arms, shoulders, and elbows can't handle or will cause irreversible harm. I'm not saying this is directly responsible for the rash of arm injuries we have seen amp up lately but I wouldn't put it out of the realm of possibility either.

I believe with all that I am that the rise of AAU/USSSA baseball is the cause of the huge rise of arm issues in baseball. The majority of these kids do nothing but baseball all year for their entire life since 7-8 years old. Most of the ones who develop as pitchers are taught off-speed and breaking pitches at an early age when the arm is still developing, which causes a lot of undue stress. Not to mention the fact the these kids are throwing 100ish pitches 30-40 weekends per year, on top of any school ball they may be playing. Their arms are just wearing out.

If I was a highly touted pitcher, I would skip college and go straight to MLB to get paid before my arm quits. I hope the best for Clarke, but it's rare that pitchers come back better than they were before this surgery.