Braves Happy Smoltz Throwing Strong Again

John Smoltz knew he was pitching on borrowed time.

Three years ago, while everyone on the outside saw only the guy who was good enough to win 17 games for the Atlanta Braves, he fretted about what was going on inside his right elbow: a constant, throbbing pain, the kind of misery that a pitcher dreads.

“I was just hoping to prolong it as along as I possibly could,” Smoltz said. “I knew if I made it through that year, I could make it through anything.”

But, despite having been through two operations, the pain persisted in 1999. He altered his motion to relieve the agony and even experimented with a knuckleball because it didn’t put as much pressure on the hinge in his arm.

It didn’t matter. The moment of dread came in his first start of spring training a year ago, when Smoltz was hammered for five hits and three runs in 1 2/3 innings.

He knew something was terribly wrong, so it wasn’t all that surprising when doctors delivered their diagnosis: A torn medial collateral ligament, requiring major surgery and forcing him to sit out an entire season.

“It was almost a relief,” Smoltz says now. “I knew that’s what was in store for me. I was waiting for that. Finally, I could get it done so I could pitch again.”

Only this time, without pain.

Smoltz, the 1996 Cy Young winner, has surpassed even the most optimistic expectations with his performance in the early days of spring training.

Every other day, he’s taken his regular stint on the mound during batting practice. He’s throwing all of his pitches: fastball, slider, even an occasional knuckler, though it’s usually for laughs.

“After a surgery like this, there’s going to be peaks and valleys and setbacks,” said Dr. Joe Chandler, the team physician. “But he’s had no real setbacks.”

Of course, Smoltz hasn’t stood on the mound to face hitters who don’t care in the least about his comeback. That first big test comes Tuesday, when he’ll start against the Los Angeles Dodgers for what should be a two-inning stint.

“It’s going to be fun,” Smoltz said, showing no sign of apprehension. “There’s great anticipation about how I’m going to be able to handle it.”

He’ll work mainly with his fastball, getting a handle on baseball’s new strike zone. There’s not going to be time for a lot of experimentation with his other pitches. That will come later.

Along the way, Smoltz will probably think of the encouraging words he got from Tommy John -- not a bad guy to hear from when you’ve just undergone Tommy John surgery.

John was the first pitcher to undergo ligament replacement surgery, an operation that now bears his name in the medical journals. After recovering, he pitched 14 more seasons in the big leagues.

“It was encouraging to know that a guy who didn’t have all the technology and knowledge and wherewithal that we have today was able to pitch that long after surgery,” Smoltz said.

At the request of the Braves team chaplain, John called shortly after Smoltz had surgery last March.

“The mistake that people make they have this surgery is they tend to put a target date on when they want to come back,” John said. “The doctor may say you’re going to come back in nine months, but what does he know? You’re ready when you know you’re ready.”

But, John warned, a pitcher must avoid the urge to come back too soon.

“To me, the essence of this surgery is the ballplayer’s tenacity and the other one is mom and dad,” he said. “I’m talking about mother nature and father time. You can’t speed it up.”

Smoltz actually had the notion of pitching again late last season, leading to a nasty disagreement with team officials when they refused to even let him throw batting practice.

“Honestly, it made me upset at the time,” Smoltz admitted. “But it was just a miscommunication. To my discredit, I shut down everything -- mentally, physically -- and just went into a little cocoon.”

Added Chandler, “We had to put a collar on him to hold him back. That was a struggle.”

For Smoltz, the worst part was watching the Braves lose three straight to St. Louis in the opening round of the playoffs. It was the team’s earliest exit since its streak of postseason appearances began in 1991.

Smoltz was always at his best in the postseason, where he was somehow able to harness the fiery, churning emotions that occasionally got the best of him during the regular season.

He won 12 of his 16 decisions in the playoffs, making him the winningest postseason pitcher in baseball history and supremely valuable to a team that finds itself playing in October year after year.

“We went three and out, man,” Greg Maddux said. “There’s no question it hurt us not having him.”

While Smoltz’s arm feels better than it has in years, he must learn to cope with the effects of modern medicine.

“Everybody tries to say they come back stronger,” Chandler said. “No one comes back stronger. It’s never as good as God made it.”

But the doctor is confident that Smoltz can learn to win again with his post-Tommy John elbow. He already showed himself to be a master of adaptability during all those years when he pitched with pain.

Smoltz has noticed some slight changes in his pitching mechanics, though they aren’t clearly evident to those around him. In layman’s terms, he feels like he’s pitching more with his body instead of his arm.

“He was an ideal candidate for this,” Chandler said. “He can change some things and still be an awesome pitcher.”

Smoltz, who turns 34 in May, doesn’t plan to follow John’s example by pitching another 14 years. Four or five will do.

“I just want to go out and enjoy it,” Smoltz said. “If something else happens, it’s not in my hands.”