Athletes take honor in their ability to play through pain, even knowing full well that it’s not only a detriment to their own health and performance, but to the team in general. Twins reliever Glen Perkins, recently shut down with a left forearm strain and nerve irritation in his left elbow, decided to pitch through his discomfort despite showing diminished velocity.
It didn’t work. Perkins allowed runs in five of his six appearances in the month of September, including in each of his last four, culminating when he blew a two-run save on Tuesday. The Twins recently decided to end their left-hander’s season, but the good news is that Perkins won’t need surgery.
Perkins seems to have learned his lesson. Via Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press:Perkins: “If I was out there throwing 85 miles an hour I would have probably expected that there was going to be some surgery done.”
— Mike Berardino (@MikeBerardino) September 20, 2014
Perkins plans to rest his arm completely until after family vacation at season’s end. Will meet w/training staff Oct. 7 to form rehab plan.
— Mike Berardino (@MikeBerardino) September 20, 2014
Perkins called this a “lesson learned ... starts with me not trying to be a tough guy and going out there and pitching through it.”
— Mike Berardino (@MikeBerardino) September 20, 2014
Would that all athletes learned Perkins’ lesson -- it’s rarely, if ever, worth it to play through an injury. Perkins ends his 2014 season with 34 saves, a 3.65 ERA, and a 66/11 K/BB ratio in 61 2/3 innings. Perkins signed a four-year, $22.175 million extension with the Twins back in March, and he’ll earn $4.65 million in 2015 before his salary begins to escalate further.