Washington Nationals Lesson

Jayson Werth

Jayson Werth and a Worth-while Lesson

The Washington Nationals have never once called me for my opinion.  But that does not keep me from spouting it!   I've been reading a lot of criticism lately about the Nats and their policy to allow players say-so about playing after injuries.  Each example made the same point--the player misdiagnosed the injury, came back too soon, and made matters worse. It's also bad business for multi-million dollar investments.  No wonder other teams like the exemplary Atlanta Braves have a trainer and management veto rule.  You play when we tell you.  That does not mean that players aren't consulted--of course they are.  It means management and not players make the final decision.

 

This is more than baseball.  A lot more.  How well do we know ourselves to take ourselves out of the game and to know when to start up?  If we want to listen to examples above, the best advice is to get advice.  What are the warning signals to get to the doctor?  (Do you need to find every rest-stop on the interstate to know the signs of diabetes--like I did?  Well, that was before my annual physicals and maybe I should have gone sooner, huh?) Or, when
do we take a day off, visit with others, and listen to our own stories? What do those stories tell us about who we are?

This story is so old and known--but here goes:  the man was chopping for weeks to get firewood. It became impossible for the axe to cut the wood.  So he turned the axe around and used the blunt end!  It is one thing to wear down and out.  It is quite another to know what to do about it--and to do it soon.