What’s Next for Kumar Rocker?

My wife noticed it first while watching this year's College World Series. Kumar Rocker in the dugout during one of his starts, oddly moving his throwing arm around. The scene was familiar to her as she watched me make a similar motion in my final playing days. This motion can become almost subconscious as a pitcher tries to keep the arm loose to avoid tightness. Internally, you think, "something doesn't feel right; if I can just keep it loose, I'll be ok."

Most of the time, the body is signaling to the brain, there is a problem present. It's the body's built-in "check engine light." The extent and severity of the problem are always a puzzle. How long Kumar's "check engine light" was on throughout the 2021 season could have slowly manifested itself into the decreases in throwing velocity, increased usage of his slider, and sub-par performance in the College World Series.

The New York Mets drafted Kumar Rocker with the 10th overall pick in the 2021 MLB Draft. Unfortunately for Kumar, the "check engine light" for his throwing arm was on when the Mets looked underneath the hood post-draft and saw enough damage not to offer the pre-draft deal of $6 million. Furthermore, because Kumar opted out of a pre-draft MRI, the Mets didn't have to extend any offer, leaving Kumar unsignable amongst all other MLB Teams.

Indeed this is a flaw in the draft process, but it illuminates the inherent risk MLB Teams face when drafting pitchers, especially in the first few rounds with millions of dollars on the line. The Mets did their due diligence and had every right to walk away from the deal within the current rules. The fallout leaves Kumar in a precarious situation and begs the question, "What's next for Kumar Rocker?".

PROVE YOU ARE HEALTHY

I would ask Kumar and his agent Scott Boras "how long has the check engine light been on?". It's only logical that the Mets saw extensive damage to perhaps the shoulder and elbow to walk away and not extend a lower offer completely. The throwing arm must have chronic issues that began to surface sometime during the 2021 season. If not, as Scott Boras claims, how could there be such a vast disparity between the independent MRI exam and that of the Mets?

Mets Owner Steve Cohen didn't see enough return with his controversial tweet below.

Now that the health of Kumar's throwing arm is a topic of public debate, his future value and signability will inevitably take a hit. However, Kumar has been healthy enough to make his starts at Vanderbilt, pitch competitively at a high level, and because of his track record of success, still have plenty of value to future MLB Teams.

But, he will need to repeatedly prove his health, which would be logical if he went back to Vanderbilt. Then, he could make all scheduled starts, accumulate innings, and prove his throwing arm is healthy enough to warrant high-dollar, high round consideration in 2022. But, according to Jeff Passan of ESPN, Kumar Rocker will not be back at Vanderbilt for the 2022 season.

IMPROVE YOUR DELIVERY SEQUENCE

This year during the College World Series, we analyzed Kumar's delivery, to which we found he had a DVS Score of 15 with two risk factors. The video below shows subtle changes in his pitching delivery from 2019 to 2021. Were the changes made to decrease risk? The changes illustrate less of a hip hinge in 2021, maybe to allow his throwing arm to be in a better position at foot strike. But the throwing arm is still late, and the major issue in our analysis is less about the position of the throwing arm and more about the load to explode sequence Kumar initiates to release the baseball.

After Kumar comes out of his break, there is a minimal accumulation of lower body momentum working down the slope of the mound and into the release of the baseball. Due to the lack of momentum, the upper torso and throwing arm have to play catch up and produce the necessary acceleration to throw the baseball at a high velocity. Over time, this 2nd to 5th gear switching increases the instability of the shoulder and elbow joint, resulting in a higher risk of injury. The increase in Mass & Momentum using better ground reaction force and gravity would pay huge dividends to Kumar’s long-term health. This adjustment is straightforward, especially for highly talented and athletic pitchers.

A LESSON FOR ALL PITCHERS

Check the health box and continue to check it each year. Expect MRI’s to be administered before a MLB Team offers you a job.

Too many pitchers obsess over getting to professional baseball and not enough on how to stay in professional baseball. If you want to make big money in baseball, you have to continue to play the game of baseball at the highest level for an extended period of time. You have to avoid significant injuries and continue to be successful on the field. A big part of the health equation is how you move to throw the baseball and the impact of those movements on your health. Too many pitchers automatically assume since they work hard in their strength & conditioning program, that they are strong enough and resilient enough to avoid injury.

Kumar Rocker is one of the most decorated and well-known college pitchers over the last twenty years. He exemplified everything you need to do to be considered and warrant a first-round draft pick. But he lost millions because of a bad MRI report on his throwing arm. Disappointing with all the hard work and success he earned over the last three years. He had one more box to check after the draft, and as of right now, it remains unchecked.