[ifspuds]

Undisclosed Injury to Walker?
by Jack McKinley
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

After an All-Star caliber campaign in 1949, Ike Walker's 1950 season has been a disappointment. Despite a recent 4-game hit streak, the slugger at the hot corner is hitting just .231 on the season and hasn't hit a home run in over a month, when he hit a pair of longballs on May 13th. Now, a local doctor says that he believes Walker is compensating for an injury that the team has not disclosed to the public.

On May 17th, in a game against the Boston Braves, Walker struck out twice and looked lost at the plate. In an 0-4 day at the dish, he failed to put the ball out of the infield, and struck out swinging in his final plate appearance in the top of the 9th. It was clear at the time that he had hurt something on his final, mighty cut for strike 3, as he walked off the field grimacing. The game ended two batters later, so he never had to take the field again on that day. No one thought anything of the possible injury, especially when he went 2-2 with a pair of walks in the next game, but neither of his singles was hard-hit, and he took several pitches that the real Ike Walker would have handled easily. Dr. Michael Paxton, a prominent orthopedist in Pittsburgh, believes that Walker is compensating for an injury to his wrist or hand, which has robbed him of his power and is making him more tentative at the plate. "If you watch his stance and swing, he has a hitch in it that he didn't have at this time last year, or even at the start of the season," said Dr. Paxton in a recent interview. "As a player brings the bat forward and through the hitting zone, the wrists are an important part of bat speed. It's very possible that the May 17th injury has lingered, and is affecting his play even now. If it's true, he should really consider resting."

Ike Walker, in a statement released by the Pirates, responded by saying, "I am not now injured, nor have I been injured at any point this season. All players suffer through slumps, and I'll break out of this one just as I've broken out of them in the past." Others have suggested that Walker was upset at the Pirates' selection of 3B phenom Dave Lemmings in the 1950 amateur draft, and despite the subsequent trade of Lemmings to the Cleveland Indians, the perceived slight continues to affect his game. Whatever the case may be, the Pirates need greater production out of one of their most reliable hitters in the past two seasons. With the top three pitchers in the rotation improving, fans' hopes for a contending team in the upcoming seasons rely on the offense. And the offense relies on Ike Walker.