Hirsch gets harsh intro to college baseball

When you're a college freshman living away from home for the first time, things aren't always easy.

While you most likely will enjoy more freedom than you're accustomed to, you probably will also experience a tinge of homesickness to go with an ever-growing mountain of dirty laundry and piles of homework.

Zach Hirsch pretty much had things going his way throughout the first few months of his freshman year at the University of Nebraska.

According to the Nebraska athletics Web site, the St. Charles North baseball standout "showed the ability to fill the strike zone and consistently get hitters out in the fall."

Hirsch, who is majoring in Business Administration, certainly didn't have any problems in the classroom, evidenced by his 3.85 GPA and being named to the Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll.

Then in early December, Hirsch appeared with St. Charles North sophomore Graham Jackson and their moms on the Today Show with Kathie Lee Gifford and Hoda Kotb after their touching story was picked for the "Everyone Has A Story" segment of the nationally televised morning show.

Last year, Hirsch decided to eat lunch in the high school cafeteria with then-freshman Jackson who has Asperger's syndrome, a form of autism, and the two have become good friends ever since.

On the mound this past fall, Hirsch had seemingly recovered from a strained elbow ligament and was back to full strength.

However, his good fortune soon changed after the southpaw pitcher admittedly felt a pop in his throwing elbow during a bullpen session.

"The day I hurt it, it felt like someone was digging a knife into my elbow," said Hirsch.

After visiting the team doctor, surgery was recommended due to the fact that Hirsch had already injured his elbow once earlier last fall.

Last month - five weeks ago, to be exact - Dr. Scott Strasburg, who studied under famed athletic surgeon Dr. James Andrews, performed Tommy John surgery on Hirsch's left elbow at the Nebraska Athletic Medical Center.

The hour-long procedure involved the reconstruction of elbow ligaments, specifically the ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) located on the inside of the elbow joint. The UCL is a band of fibrous tissue that connects two or more bones and supports the arm muscles inside the elbow.

First, Dr. Strasburg cut through Hirsch's left knee (non-landing leg) to remove part of his hamstring before wrapping it around the injured elbow and fastening it in place with screws.

"Afterward, I experienced no pain in my elbow," said Hirsch, "but I had a lot of knee pain the first week that has since gone away."

Last October marked the 35th anniversary of the surgical procedure first performed by Dr. Frank Jobe on then-Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Tommy John. After an 18-month rehabilitation program, John made a triumphant return to the mound in 1976 and pitched 14 more seasons, winning 164 additional games.

In 1974, Dr. Jobe put the odds on John's success rate following surgery at "1 in 100."

Today, those odds have significantly improved to as high as a 90- to 95-percent success rate. In fact, Tommy John surgery has even been referred to these days as a "pitcher's best friend."

The ever-growing list of Major League pitchers to have undergone Tommy John surgery includes such notables as Mariano Rivera, Kerry Wood, Ryan Dempster, John Smoltz, A.J. Burnett, Chris Carpenter and Edinson Volquez.

Minnesota Twins ace reliever Joe Nathan is expected to have the surgery performed in the next couple weeks.

"Studies show that 1 in 9 Major League pitchers have had Tommy John surgery," said Hirsch, a three-time unanimous All-Upstate Eight Conference selection who compiled a 17-5 record and 0.99 ERA during his three-year varsity career with the North Stars, isn't the only local high school star hurler to have experienced Tommy John surgery.

Former Kaneland left-hander Casey Crosby, who underwent reconstructive elbow surgery in 2007, is currently the No. 2 rated prospect in the Detroit Tigers organization. Crosby, whose fastball was clocked in the low 90s during his high school playing days, had fastballs reportedly clocked at 98 mph last season while with the West Michigan Whitecaps.

Due to a number of factors, most notably an increased attention to conditioning, many recent post-Tommy John surgery pitchers have increased their velocity.

In other words, they're throwing harder than they were before the injury.

"I'd like that," said Hirsch, whose fastball has been clocked in the mid- to high-80s. "I wouldn't mind coming back and being able to throw in the mid 90s."

Hirsch, who visited with his former high school baseball teammates during a short stay at home last week, missed out on the Cornhuskers' recent trip to Texas and will likely just attend home games as a red-shirt freshman this season.

"From a mental standpoint, it hasn't been too bad," said Hirsch, whose only previous medical problem involved an emergency appendectomy prior to his sophomore season. "And with me being a freshman, I guess it happened at a pretty good time if it had to happen."

Soon, Hirsch will begin an 8-month rehabilitation process (5 days per week) while gradually increasing his range of motion. He plans on throwing (flat ground) some time in June and will return home later this summer.

"I know my parents will be happy to have me home again," said Hirsch.

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