JULY 14: A setback in Hicks’ Tommy John rehab played a part in his decision to opt out, manager Mike Shildt revealed Tuesday (via Saxon). Hicks is dealing with inflammation and would not have been able to pitch until at least September had he decided to play this year.
JULY 13: Cardinals closer Jordan Hicks has opted out of the 2020 season, citing preexisting health concerns, the Cardinals announced on Monday. Hicks, who has Type 1 diabetes, is also recovering from Tommy John surgery and was expected to open the season on the injured list.
“We respect and understand Jordan’s decision to opt out this season,” president of baseball operations John Mozeliak said in a statement announcing the news. “We wish him well as he continues his recovery from elbow surgery, and we look forward to seeing Jordan back on the mound for the 2021 season.”
Hicks becomes the 13th Major League player to opt out of the 2020 season, joining a growing list that figures to have more additions between now and Opening Day. While most have been veteran players with considerable career earnings already under their belt, Hicks and White Sox hurler Michael Kopech have bucked that trend, joining Nationals righty Joe Ross as younger players on the opt-out list.
Notably, The Athletic’s Mark Saxon tweets that Type 1 diabetes is listed by MLB as a preexisting condition that would allow a player to opt out and receive service time and salary. Hicks isn’t yet arbitration-eligible, so he’ll take home a prorated salary worth only a bit more than the league minimum, but the service time he accrues this season will push him to three years — making him arbitration-eligible for the first time this winter. He won’t have much of a platform to earn a considerable raise, but that will bring him one step closer to free agency in the 2023-24 offseason, so it’s certainly of importance to both player and team.
Hicks is baseball’s hardest thrower, averaging a ridiculous 101.6 mph on his fastball prior to injury. After a solid rookie season in 2018, he looked to be elevating his game to another level in 2019, when he pitched to a 3.14 ERA with 9.7 K/9, 3.5 BB/9, 0.63 HR/9 and a massive 67.2 percent ground-ball rate in 28 2/3 innings. Hicks went 14-for-15 in save opportunities last year before his injury, firmly seizing the ninth-inning job in manager Mike Shildt’s bullpen.
From a pure baseball perspective, it’s a tough loss for the Cardinals, who have also seen setup man John Brebbia undergo Tommy John surgery while top setup man Giovanny Gallegos has yet to report to Summer Camp. There’s been talk of again using Carlos Martinez as a late-inning option, though the right-hander’s preference has been to start. Mozeliak has also previously mentioned right-hander Ryan Helsley as a potential ninth-inning option in absence of Hicks.
Was really looking forward to see that 102 MPH sinker with movement, but hey. He’s making the right decision to put his health above all else.
You won’t see that again.
Yes, you will.
Velocity doesn’t have that much correlation with injury. Chapman has been throwing 100+ for years without being injury prone.
Thank you for not being the team doctor since you obviously have no clue what you’re talking about.
Can you name any pitcher that had Tommy John surgery that came back and could not throw as hard as they could before? Go ahead, we will be waiting.
It’s not a matter if they can throw as hard, it’s a matter if they can still be effective. The list is looooooong of those who were never the same after the surgery. What good is throwing 102 if you can’t throw strikes? Go ask Trevor Rosenthal as a recent 100mph casualty.
Jake DeGrom still looks pretty good.
For every Degrom there are 10 guys who never pitch well again after TJ surgery or any arm surgery. You rarely, if ever, hear about them because many are minor leaguers or younger. Degrom had surgery in 2011. Bitter you say Tim? Bitter about what? I’m simply stating that arm surgery is not something you just come back from easily.
No, you stated that it’s not possible for Hicks to come back from his arm surgery. Which is ridiculous. He’s still extremely young and plenty capable of healing and coming back full health, especially with the extended recovery time and not trying to push it too quickly
Stan, no I didn’t. I responded to the comment of him throwing 102mph sinkers with movement. I never ever said he couldn’t come back from arm surgery and still pitch in this league. Don’t put words in my mouth.
I think the assumption that him coming back to the league to pitch means he would have to rediscover his sinker is a fair one to make here.
If Hicks is going to throw 102 like most of you claim he will, then it really doesn’t matter what he “re-discovers.” No matter what he does, he better cut down on his walk rate. His best course of action would be to develop or “discover” a high 80s change up to go with that 102mph whatever.
@ “For every DeGrom there are 10 guys who never pitch well again after TJ surgery”
So you just make obviously false statements and walk away? Probably 1/8 of the guys in mlb have had TJ surgery.
Successful recipients: John Smoltz, Jamie Moyer, Andy Ashby, AJ Burnett, Walker Buehler, Patrick Corbin, Johnny Cueto, Ryan Dempster, Danny Duffy, Nathan Eovaldi, Jose Fernandez, Max Fried, Eric Gagne, Tom Gordon, Mike Hampton, Matt Harvey, Andrew Heaney, Sterling Hitchcock, Dinelson Lamet, Francisco Liriano… Shall I keep going?
google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j…
Javia, you are like the rest on here. Can’t read. Nobody puts out a list of all the high school, college and minor leaguers who have the surgery and never are the same again. So take your Pompous response and stick it. And learn to read.
Javia, here are the facts from a study done in 2015. 20% of MLB pitchers who have the surgery never throw another pitch in the MAJORS again. 50% never throw more than 100 innings at the MAJOR league level again. So if you’re looking at reality of what the success rate is, I would say it 50% to come back and pitch normal. Sources are: Drs. Anthony Romeo, Christopher Ahmad, Jimmy Jiang and The American Sports Medicine Institute. And please remember, this was just a study done of MLB pitchers. No high school, college or minor leaguers were in this.
He was on pace to be an elite reliever in 2019 before the injury. I don’t think he really needs to change much lol.
Bitter I see bitterness.
I got to see Hicks throw on Easter Sunday 2019, it was awesome. Closest I’d ever been at a ball game, I was blessed to have seen him. Hope he heals and inflammation goes away. I deal with it in my tendons and ligaments as well surgically repaired tendon in my thumb and tendonitis in my forearm. Hope he heals
Without hicks I hope one of the young guys get a chance and not some washed up vet. Cards need to see what these kids can do
Aside from Cecil (who would never be the pick) and perhaps Miller, who in the Cardinals’ bullpen even fits that description? The only other potential reliever not in his 20’s is Kim. The top candidates for the closer job (Gallegos, Helsley, etc.) are indeed the young guys.
Washed up vet? While the cardinals should explore options I’d never call any of the veterans the birds have “washed up” still can recall Carlos Beltrans knees buckling to end the NLCS in 2006 like it was yesterday.
What does Beltran on the Mets in 2006 have to do with washed up Cards vets?
I was expecting the decision to come and honestly it’s probably a better option for him not to rush back for a season this short anyways. Full recovery and bring the heat in 2021!
It’s not about the arm, it’s about the pancreas.
probably for the better for both him and the team. hope he is 100% for next year
Except the team will give up the service time(I totally agree with his decision on any level and I think the team does too). Granted it was a given on the IL anyway but the Cards were hoping for some use in the playoffs, I believe, in a normal year which may have helped ease the pain on the service clock side…
As a Cards fan, I’m definitely happier to hear he’ll spend more time letting his arm heal than risk it for a fake season that very well won’t be completed anyway (assuming it even starts).
So 1981 was a fake season as well.
Funny, for the last four decades, I never heard people dissing 1981.
I get a kick out of the fake season crowd. Only way it’s fake is if teams played different amount of games than other teams. It’s a real season!!
Ehh….we’ll see how history remember the season, if it’s completed. 60 games is almost nothing in the context of the way the MLB season is supposed to work. In 1981 it was just 6 weeks lost (108 games were still played). We’re going to lose 4 months here. I think it’s going to feel more like a long World Cup tournament than an MLB season, with two months of “group play” followed by the knockout round.
Will it be entertaining? Yes. Will the winner have reason to celebrate? Yes. Will it mean the same in the eyes of the fans and the players as the Nationals’ victory last season? …..I guess we’ll find out, but I doubt it.
I’d still rather have a fully healthy Hicks in 2021 than have him push himself to help win…whatever this is going to be.
That was 1972.
No, it was 1981. But yeah, it wasn’t 108 for everyone. “Most teams finished with anywhere between 106 and 109 games.”
*https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1981_Major_League_Baseball_strike*
In 1981 the Dodgers made the playoffs based on a 57 game schedule.
No it is artificial.
1972 was the year Detroit made the playoffs because they played one more game than the Red Sox.
What’s scary is I remember that.
There were two halfs in 1981. The Dodgers made the playoffs based on a 57 game season.
If my memory serves. Eight teams made the playoffs in 1981. The winners of the first half and the winners of the second half. No team won both haves.
1972 and 1981 they played a different amount of games.
Very true. Second half of split season. Poor Expos got hosed
The Expos made the playoffs. The Cardinal and Reds got hosed.
If my memory serves, 1995 the Expos got hosed.
Yeah, the Reds really got hosed. They had the overall best combined record of any NL team over the whole season and didn’t make the playoffs because they weren’t the best in their division in either half.
People don’t really remember 1981 as a fake season mainly because that season happened before most people here were born. I am in my mid 40s and I was only 5 when that season happened. Most of the people that remember that season well are in their 50s and above. Time doesn’t necessarily heal all wounds, it just kills off the people that remember the injury.
While it wasn’t due to season length, the 1942-45 seasons were just as compromised with the gutted rosters, and nobody treats the ’42 and ’44 Cardinals, ’43 Yankees, or ’45 Tigers as fake champions. Also, nobody disses the 1919 Reds as fake champs despite the other team letting them win the World Series.
I don’t think people even connect 1919 with the Reds. If anyone brings up 1919 in the context of baseball, the first thought is “Black Sox.” “Who did the Black Sox lose to” is practically a trivia question.
More legit than the Astros Championship
I wouldn’t consider 60 games a season. More like a extended spring training. There should be zero playoffs this year.
Over 100 games in 1981 tho. I don’t think it’s apples to apples with 2020
Paging Mr. Martinez, you’re needed in the ninth!
Paging Mr. Martinez, you’re needed in the 9th. Make sure your brain knows it’s not the 7th.
Relievers make about 1/4 what starters do. I can understand if he doesn’t want to do it.
Unless you’re on the Cardinals. Andrew Miller $11.5M. Mikolas $17M
Since when is Mikolas a reliever?
Lanidrac, did you read javia’s comment about relievers making 1/4 of what a starter makes? I never said Mikolas was a reliever.
He is NOT an RP.
Let me explain something to everyone, because some of you can’t follow the dots. Javia stated relievers make roughly 1/4 salary than starters. I said, “unless you’re on the Cardinals.” Reliever Miller makes $11.5M. STARTER Mikolas makes $17M. That is NOT 1/4. Bottom line is high end closers make AS MUCH or close to a #3-5 STARTER. By the way, it’s not just the Cardinals. It’s everywhere.
Paging Mr. Martinez, you’re needed even more in the starting rotation. The bullpen is deep enough without you, especially since Kim will then be in the bullpen in your place.
This was a no brainer. I wish him a safe year. If you know you have a preexisting condition, you have to opt out.
For the vast majority of completely healthy people around 30, it’s not about you, but who you might infect.
Agree… he’s definitely making the right decision to put his health first. And considering he’s also recovering from TJ surgery this was basically a no-brainer. Wish him the best health-wise.
i mean they still have a lot of young arms, pen or otherwise
If morrow has not opted out then he probably will
Didnt the Cubs release him anyway?
Yeah, they released him
In Soviet Russia, opt outs you!
from a business perspective, assuming he counts as a ‘high-risk’ player and thus accrues service time. This kind of seems like a no brainer. Especially considering he was going to start the year on the DL anyway due to TJ recovery. I mean best case scenario for him was that he would make it back and pitch in what… maybe 10-15 games AT MOST!? So especially considering he’ll accrue service time and become Arb-Eligible… why go through all the hassle of this season just to possibly pitch in a dozen or so games? Anyway wish him the best in his recovery from TJ and I’m sure he’ll return at full strength next season!
He’s a type 1 diabetic so it doesn’t get much more high risk than that.
If he keeps his blood sugar under control he is same risk as everyone else.
He’s from Houston, they’re getting absolutely hammered right now. I’m sure it’s not a fake or harmless to him. Wise move as this year has absolutely no meaning whatsoever. He can continue to strengthen. It will be interesting to see the impact this time frame will have on all the pitchers currently out with TJ recovery. Plus, there will be a smaller number of pitchers out with TJ recovery next year than is typical. I think we may see a profound change in how pitchers are used transpiring over the next couple of years. By the 2022 or 2023 seasons of baseball it might be a different game altogether.
Being FROM Houston has no effect on him. He would be in St. Louis if he played and would never travel to Houston this season, save for a possible World Series matchup. That being said, his diabetes coupled with TJ surgery recovery, is enough to warrant an opt out. He doesn’t need to prove anything this year.
Being from Houston just means he is bound to have family and friends who are facing the full force of the outbreak at this time. Speaking to them and hearing what is going may have played a role in educating his decision.
Diabetes is a very common comorbidity for COVID so this makes sense.
I would want to put a small number of innings on my newly rebuilt arm just to give me a little head start advantage going into next year if I was him. But to each his own.
Shart
Darn, stink. I selfishly was hoping to see that gas some point this year.
I just love baseball and hope we get to see some played.
This bullpen could be a Dumpster fire. Brebbia, Gallegos, and Hicks were going to be the main three righties in the pen. Alex Reyes was supposed to be a wild card, but he’s missing in action with no explanation. Andrew Miller had that freak arm thing in March, so who knows where he’s at. Genesis Cabrera, another wild card, got hit with COVID-19.
I think we’re gonna see some movement soon for some new arms. Maybe they’ll take a flier on Morrow or something.
The season is a wash anyway. Why worry about who is playing and who isn’t?
A smart move. All the best to him
Hope he comes back strong next yr. Doing the right thing. MLB hasn’t shown they can control anything about this mess
Nope, it’s the arm.
This makes absolute sense. Nobody should be expected to rush injury recovery in order to play in the 2020 McSeason.