My Toe. The Water. Dipping In.
OK. I'll do it. Before I say this, and before i comment on these comments, let me point out - I love Justin Morneau. I think he's a great player (in the regular season when he's healthy, but that's for another post discussion), blah blah blah, I hope he comes back and I think we need him if we have any chance at being successful.
Now, to my point. And before I say this, let me point out that I don't think people who get concussions are pussies. I think that SOME people who get concussions are pussies. But before I say that, let me point out that I am not saying Justin Morneau is one of them. I am saying I'm just wondering about....stuff. You know, that maybe, In a general sort of way, if some of the new found focus on concussions is making people find illness in ways we didn't use to.
I do think there is a real problem with concussions in sports and a lack of understanding about the impacts these things have on people, especially in the future. But I also think that is true of lots of things. Someday I think we will be surprised or unsurprised to find out that being hit in the stomach 100 days a week by giant men is probably bad for your kidneys, and running full speed when you're 38 is doing longterm damage to your spine and throwing baseballs 125 times a day three times a week causes damage to your retinas and...well, whatever. The point is, this has been going on a ling time and there is now a rash of players who can suddenly now simply not function after one or two concussions. Where were these guys before? I know, a lot didn't get reported. And a lot played through it. And I guess that's part of the point. I know we keep hearing these anecdotes about people suffering long term brain damage, but also, those are some extreme cases, and a lot of other more extreme examples never materialized in long term damage. Causation can be hard to show and harder to predict for, but I just wonder how much of this is becoming a self-fulfilling prophesy. I am not a doctor. And I am not a professional athlete. But I am a blogger, if you can count writing a post on a blog occasionally read by five guys occasionally, a blog. I am not questioning anyone's toughness. I'm just questioning whether we should.
When I read morneau's comments, i start to wonder if some part of his dilemma is the fear of feeling sick, like he almost expects it. He sounds like a guy tentatively waiting for the next show to fall on his head. In some ways I can't blame him, but if you're always wondering if someone is hiding in your closet, you will always know that someday someone might be.
People feel shitty and weak a lot. And they force themselves to deliver. I dont know. But if the future of sports is players afraid to play, I think we are in for some sad and short careers. I wonder if Cal Ripken, Stan Musial, Ted Williams ever got concussed. But I bet if they did, (and I bet they did), I bet they would sound different in the way they talked about the battle to get back on the field. And I think a lot of people working in a plant would fight through their dizziness if they could, and if they were getting paid $15 million a year, would probably just not tell anyone.
I know this sounds horrible. But if you can't say it on a blog...
POST DISCLAIMER DISCLAIMER -- I do love Morneau. And I am not questioning him specifically. (that's in case he's reading this while he's not on the field)
6 Comments:
I have not gotten this since the whole thing started stretching out. I have never gotten how one knee to the head has turned into a career threatening injury. It is not like he took a fastball to the eye. What would the New York media be doing to him?
True story, I had a fraternity brother, definitely not a friend, who got hit in the head/face with a 2x4. He was knocked out cold. I would be shocked if his orbital socket was not broken. His whole eye was swollen shut for over a week. He did not even go to the hospital. He self medicated and bought a novelty pirate costume eye patch and wore that until his eye opened up again. Was that the smartest way to handle it? No. Does this even really get at the JM situation? Probably not. I am just saying people suffer head trauma everyday and don't miss 2 years of work.
February 24, 2012 at 5:08 PM
Well, I was originally logging on to give kudos to RTS for holding down the fort last week for FTLOSBW with his post but I find this instead. Agree on all fronts. Kirby would have said "hey at least I can fucking see, let's play two."
I think you raise a very good point on "mental toughness", it's what made America great. Morneau is Canadian so I can say the same rules apply. Not going to comment on Mauer and his mental apraoach. Of course they have to drag out koskie because of the way his career ended which sounded terrible but I kinda think Moreau is a pussy. There I said it.
Also, RTS I would like to work on book with you and your college stories. It'll be published by FTLOSBW Press. Couple follow ups- did u see the guy get hit in the head with the 2x4? Regardless, I'm going to need some color commentary with that story. I know there are some peripheral characters I need to know about
February 27, 2012 at 5:57 AM
I did not see it. I did see the aftermath of his face though and it was gruesome. The whole thing started with 2 guys either being tossed from a party or being denied admittance. There was the typical face off in the parking lot with statements like "What are you going to do about it?" Apparently, what he was going to do about it was grab a 2x4 from in/around the trash dumpster next to him, take a wild swing and clobber my unfortunate acquaintance in the melon. What I was told is someone could have yelled "timber" as Scott fell rigid to the ground. The swinger of the 2x4, was off and running as though it were part of his follow-through and ultimately out ran any pursuers. That was probably not that hard of a task, I would guess there were not a lot of runners in the group. His friend, who was not aware that his buddy was going to hit someone with a 2x4 in the head, did not get quite the jump and was beaten mercilessly in the Acacia sand volleyball pit.
I was never the guy who got in fights in college so I am guessing that is how I missed the whole ordeal. I may not have even been at the party as my interest in the house had pretty much waned by the end of my sophomore year.
February 27, 2012 at 2:32 PM
This is a tough one, because no one really knows how a bad concussion feels. Al Toon apparently can't get out of bed some days, because his headaches are so bad, and his vision so blurry. And that's a POST-concussion system. Allegedly, Morneau was in a similar state during his recovery - stuck inside in dark rooms for days on end.
That all being said, how does this drag on for so long? And to your point, how was this so much worse than a WR getting crushed over the middle?
You hit on a key point, though, and that is the mental toughness. I've heard race car drivers and skiers say that the minute you think about a crash or life-threatening injury, you are done. Done. Forget it, you'll never win another race / competition. And it certainly seems like Morneau may be thinking a little too much about getting a fastball to the ear-hole or something.
Interesting juxtaposition: I just read about the kid from Benilde who was paralyzed in a hockey game in late Dec. Yikes...so gut-wrenchingly sad. Whenever I hear a story like that, I have even less sympathy for pro athletes who can't play on a sore hammy.
February 27, 2012 at 4:25 PM
RE: RTS' college stories. I am all in for $1k of funding to get that book written / movie made. I'm naive enough that, when I first read your story, I assumed the guy was at a construction site, not fighting outside a fraternity house.
February 27, 2012 at 4:27 PM
First off - did you dudes see we have a "Follower" now? That's either awesome, or it's someone in the Twins front office ready to revoke our fanship rights if we take this thread too far.
My guess on the Morneau thing is that through a combination of heightened sensitivity to the unknown vagueries of the longterm consequences of concussions, he's gotten so much medical and other attention that it's led to a hypersensitivity to his own body. And brainwashed him out of the "Whatever, I can play" mentality he probably started with. Kind of like when your kids have the flu and you start noticing every time your stomach grumbles or you belch and figure "Damn, I'm going to be throwing up within five minutes."
There's also something to be said for the influence of $$ here. Stan Musial didn't make $17 million a year or the at the time equivalent. Those guys didn't have the financial ability to quit playing baseball at 28 and never have to work a day the rest of their lives, and they had no skills to contribute to the real world. So they kept playing because it's what they did, milking what they could in pay and hoping it expanded the half life of their post-baseball careers pitching Chesterfields and Buicks. Morneau has the option of retiring at a very young age and spending the rest of his life shuffling between 3 or 4 homes and playing golf. That changes one's mentality about an injury that could lead to longterm brain effects.
I've been willing to cut a lot of leeway based on the fact that one can't know how many times a kid who grew up playing hockey in British Columbia's been concussed prior to this time, and so I take it on faith when the doctors say there's a cumulative effect at work here. It's not just one knee to the head.
That said, after 2.5 years, it's time to either quit or play full time. You owe it to the team at some point to stop holding a roster spot and fucking up the payroll equation if you're too afraid of not being able to think straight when you're 50. You've made $75M+ and can live happily ever after if you so choose. Just choose one way or the other.
February 28, 2012 at 11:08 AM
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