JV baseball at West Bloomfield High School has caught a tough break to start the season. After the first few weeks of play, their record is 3-9 overall, however in their conference they are 2-1. This team has plenty of time to bounce back and still finish with a good season, as their games continue on into the middle of May. So far the Lakers have experienced many issues, all occurring for the same reason. The simple task of care taking for their arms is being neglected and thus has sent the players and coaches into distress mode, as there is a shortage of pitchers remaining who can still throw. The pitchers include Sean Gilliam (10), Jordan Beletskiy (10), Jake Kuhlman (9), Blake Barnes (10), Collin Goan (10), Uday Kode (10), and Brian Bembas (10). Although they have a solid 7 pitchers on the roster, most, if not all, of the pitchers fail to take care of their arms. Coach Gill and Coach Johnson, who have been coaches at WB for 2 and 4 years respectively, have the pitchers run for 10-15 minutes after they have thrown due to the lack of usable arms remaining. After speaking with the coaches, we got a better idea of where the team stands. Coach Johnson said, “The most common pain we see right now is in the elbow and in the shoulder”. The reason these areas are affected is because of the lactic acid buildup. That is why running is very important, it drains the sections of the acid buildup within the arm. If left to sit, it creates even more buildup, a reservoir of acid. The next day, the players feel pain in their arms and may even be unable to throw. Coach Gill also tells the players to “ice every night, even if you haven’t thrown”. Running and icing are crucial to maintaining good arm health, especially for as many games as the high school baseball season contains. Working arm bands and arm drills are also key to keeping an arm healthy and even improving its strength. A player only has one throwing arm, so it is vital to take care of it because once it’s gone, it’s gone for good. A surgery is always an option later on down the road if it is in that bad of shape, but there is always a chance that once the surgery is performed, a player may not return to the game. Bottom line, take care of your arm.