As he prepares for Tommy John surgery, Stephen Strasburg should have plenty of time to catch up on his reading. He might want to start with the blog of another young pitcher going through the same thing: Kris Medlen. Medlen opened the season in Atlanta’s bullpen before moving into the rotation in place of an injured Jair Jurrjens in May and outperforming Kenshin Kawakami to earn a permanent spot. Unfortunately, he hurt his elbow earlier this month and underwent Tommy John surgery after going 6-2 with a 3.68 ERA in 107 2/3 innings for the Braves. The 24-year-old Medlen plans to chronicle his rehab over the next several months. He made his first blog entry Thursday, eight days after undergoing the procedure:
Medlen probably has a better chance of pitching in major league games next year than Strasburg does. Not only will he have gotten started on his rehab a few weeks earlier, but given his history out of the pen, the Braves won’t be afraid to have him return as a reliever. If his first entry is any indication, it’s going to be awfully difficult to hold him back.
