There are few starting pitchers in the WPK with knuckle-baller Lienhart Brown's sheer talent and baseball smarts. But also few as plagued with injury proneness either.
The 24-year old native of Germany has once again suffered a season-ending injury after having missed most of the 1973 season due to elbow surgery. The surgery was to remove bone chips but now, in his 24th start of the 1974 season he is gone with a fracture in that same fragile elbow.
After having been the overall first pick of the 1969 draft, Brown looked like he was well on his way to super-stardom and possibly a Hall of Fame career.
But there are already indications that his prodigious talent might never be fully realized and fears that this second serious elbow injury in two seasons might presage the beginning of the end of his career.
While the Sting have a talented and still fairly deep rotation the loss of their ace can't help but..well, sting a bit as they try to keep pace with the first place Brewers.