Wednesday, September 12, 2007

You tell 'em Cole Hamels........


This is the second time this year we have seen a major league baseball player demanding a team Chiropractor..... This article is a repost of Paul Hagen's article from the Daily news....


Paul Hagen Cole: Get my back, will ya?
SAYS TEAM CHIROPRACTOR MIGHT HAVE PREVENTED ELBOW INJURY

YONG KIM/Daily News
Cole Hamels has been out 3 weeks, might not be back this year.
ATLANTA - Sometimes a pitcher will challenge the hitter. Sometimes he'll knock the batter off the plate.
Cole Hamels, who knew exactly what he was doing, took advantage of an impromptu interview session in front of his locker before last night's 5-2 win over the Braves at Turner Field to come up-and-in on the Phillies organization.
That's a pretty neat trick for a guy who's on the disabled list.
It's no secret that inconsistent pitching has been the Phillies' biggest bugaboo all season and remains their most pressing concern down the stretch. Or that getting Hamels - who was 14-5 with a 3.50 earned run average before being sidelined by a strained elbow 3 weeks ago - back into the rotation for several more starts would be like adding a jet-propulsion pack to their chances of making the playoffs.
So a conversation with reporters that started with an inquiry about when he'll try to throw again - probably Friday - quickly evolved into the 23-year-old lefthander saying he thinks his elbow aches are an outgrowth of his back problems, for which he sees a chiropractor.
And he was just getting warmed up.
"Sometimes it's tough to get [appointments] when we're traveling," he said. "That's why it would be a big help if the team would get a chiropractor. That's up to them. I'd like to go at least twice a week. That's what I try to do when I'm at home. When I'm at spring training, I go twice a week and I get a massage before I get adjusted."
So was he suggesting that if the Phillies employed somebody to work on his back regularly, he wouldn't be on the disabled list with elbow problems?
"I don't think so. I really don't," he replied. "To be a top player you have to use the best of everything."
Zing . . .
"There's a lot of guys that are very interested. It's just up to the team to make the effort," he added helpfully.
There will be some who will applaud all this as a sign of coming-of-age leadership.
There will be others who will see this as just another example of a pampered modern athlete who will next expect the club to provide manicures and pedicures on demand, along with green tea and finger sandwiches presented on a silver platter.
If nothing else, it helped shift the focus from the three-game losing streak that the Phillies dragged with them into the ballpark last night.
This is a touchy area. Some teams openly frown on chiropractors. Some players who see them have to do it on the down low.
The Phillies have never tried to discourage Hamels from seeking treatment on his own. "Cole is free to use it. We do not provide it and it is not commonly provided throughout the industry. Maybe two or three teams do," said assistant general manager Ruben Amaro Jr.
While conceding that he doesn't have a medical degree, Amaro indicated that he doesn't really believe there's a link between the back and his elbow. "I would be surprised if the tendon problem he is having in his elbow is either best served or reduced with the use of chiropractic medicine," he said.
Hamels, however, is convinced. And as long as he thinks it will help him, well, success in this game is largely mental, after all.
"A lot of it is keeping your elbow in place," he said. "When you're using it and using it, it can slowly slip and you develop some fluid and inflammation in there. When you're keeping it in place, then when it is getting that wear and tear it's actually in the right area.
"You definitely need a guy you can trust."
That's why he would like to have a team chiropractor who makes all the trips.
In fairness, the Phillies are working with a nutritionist this year and regularly make a massage therapist available at home. Compared to the rest of baseball, they are not behind the curve here. "It took the team a while, but it's hard to complain when we've had a lot of good things here," Hamels said.
Amaro diplomatically didn't rule out the possibility that the team will strongly consider the suggestion of one of the best young pitchers in baseball and a player that much of the franchise's near future appears to hinge on.
"We've discussed it. Probably at some point we'll evaluate it," he said.
Meanwhile, the question of whether Hamels will be available again this season also remains up in the air.
"There's a chance he might not be," admitted manager Charlie Manuel. "It depends on how he feels when he tries to throw. He's a guy that, when he pitched, you expect to win the game. So if you go back and count at the end of the year and he's missed six, eight starts, those are games you think you would have won."
Hamels said there's only so much he can do. "I don't want to get that label of being injury-prone, but I can live with that," he said. "I'd definitely like to be back to finish the season.
"I think we just keep bumping it back until I feel good. The goal is to get healthy before the end of the season. Whether it's three starts, two starts or one start. That all depends on our chances for the playoffs."
The fewer starts Hamels is able to make, of course, the less the Phillies' chances for the playoffs seem to be.