Andrew Miller, The World Baseball Classic and Pitcher Workload

World Series - Cleveland Indians v Chicago Cubs - Game Four

When it was announced that Andrew Miller would pitch for team USA in the World Baseball Classic, there was a collective groan among the Indians front office staff and it’s fans. The nervousness felt by most is certainly founded; not by here-say but rather fact.

Along with Miller, other Major League teams will be sending their pitchers to pitch in the international contest. The tournament may be good entertainment for the fans but at an increased injury risk to pitchers. Miller, coming off a postseason where his workload was pushed to the brink, will be asked to “ramp-up” that workload roughly a whole month sooner than most every other pitcher in the league.

The injury risk is not concentrated on All along the coasts of Florida and in the heart of Arizona, Major League Baseball teams are preparing for the start of spring training along with those preparing for the World Baseball Classic. Soon, the camps will be populated by hundreds of players ready to start their preparation for the 2017 season. And with pitchers and catchers officially reporting this week, they will begin the weeks long shuttle to ready their arms for Opening Day.

It is a rite of spring and for those involved in keeping those pitchers like Miller healthy, these first few days of spring training, are a cause of concern.

As baseball puts increasingly more scrutiny into how to protect arms and lower Tommy John rates, they have considered pitch counts and innings thrown and many other factors, but anecdotal and empirical data shows that spring training is a problem of its own. To keep those pitchers off the disabled list and operating table, teams must first navigate the landmines of February and March.

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