Angels’ pitcher Shohei Ohtani was placed on the disabled list with what was described as a grade 2 sprain, or partial tear, of the Ulnar Collateral Ligament. The ulnar (or medial) collateral ligament connects the humerus and the ulna on the inside (side closest to the body) of the elbow joint. All professional throwers develop changes in this ligament. After years of throwing a baseball over and over as hard as one can, the elbow and shoulder change under the stress. This is uncommonly an acute injury in the setting of these long-standing changes. More often, it is just a decrease in pitching effectiveness, often related to an increase in pain.

The Angel’s stated that he had a stem cell injection and a platelet rich plasma (PRP) injection (his second in a year) on June 6th. These are two different types of injections that are increasingly used for various problems without evidence that they help. To our knowledge, there is no evidence that stem cells or PRP are better than placebo injections for elbow pain in throwers. He will be reevaluated in 3 weeks.

The team has limited his pitching to basically a Sunday starter like the one’s used in college. so that he can continue to be effective. Apparently they have decided to add a period of rest and some experimental injections. They’ve been unsuccessful and his injury has progressed.