Getting Cut

Breaking Down the Risk of Baseball UCL Injuries

By: Christopher S. Ahmad MD

Narrated by: Virtual Voice

Why are so many baseball players getting cut?

The UCL injury crisis has become one of the most urgent problems in modern baseball. Once considered a rare injury among veteran professionals, Tommy John surgery is now affecting teenagers, college athletes, elite prospects, and major leaguers at alarming rates.

In Getting Cut, world-renowned orthopedic surgeon and baseball sports medicine expert Christopher S. Ahmad, MD takes readers inside the epidemic of elbow injuries threatening the future of the game.

With the perspective of a surgeon, researcher, team physician, and lifelong student of performance, Dr. Ahmad breaks down why the modern throwing arm is under attack. The answer is not one bad pitch, one flawed mechanic, or one reckless coach. It is a system: velocity obsession, pitch design, year-round throwing, workload spikes, fatigue, poor recovery, sleep loss, nutrition gaps, psychological pressure, and a culture that rewards dominance before durability.

Written for players, parents, coaches, clinicians, trainers, scouts, and anyone who cares about baseball, Getting Cut explains the hidden forces that push the fragile ulnar collateral ligament toward failure. It reveals why pain should never be ignored, why Tommy John surgery is not a performance upgrade, why youth elbow injuries matter years later, and why prevention must begin long before the operating room.

This is not just a book about injury.

It is a call to protect dreams, preserve careers, and rethink how baseball develops the arms that carry its future.

Inside this book, you'll discover:

• The real causes behind the rise in UCL injuries
• Why Tommy John surgery is often misunderstood
• The impact of velocity culture and year-round throwing
• How fatigue, recovery, sleep, and nutrition affect arm health
• What players, parents, and coaches can do to reduce injury risk
• The future of injury prevention in baseball

Whether you're a player, parent, coach, clinician, or baseball fan, Getting Cut provides an essential roadmap for protecting the future of the game.

Mindset Shift

One of the most profound takeaways from this book was that it completely changed the way I think about Tommy John surgery. Before reading it, I had convinced myself that surgery was likely the obvious next step for my son. In many ways, I had accepted the narrative that Tommy John surgery is almost inevitable for high-level pitchers, that if they're chasing velocity and competing at an elite level, it's simply a matter of when, not if. Looking back, I realize I had bought into that mindset because it's what we hear so often in today's baseball culture. This book challenged that belief. It reminded me that while surgery is absolutely necessary for some athletes, it should never be viewed as inevitable or as the default path. That shift in perspective alone made this book worth reading.

What resonated most was the concept that the body often gives us warning signs long before a ligament finally tears. Dr. Ahmad explains how forearm tightness, flexor muscle fatigue, and small tissue injuries may not be isolated problems, they can be the body's early warning system. Rather than viewing these symptoms as something to push through, the book reframes them as signals that the muscles responsible for protecting the UCL are beginning to fail. That perspective was incredibly eye-opening.
I was especially struck by the explanation that the UCL doesn't survive on its own. It depends on the surrounding forearm muscles to absorb tremendous forces with every pitch. When those muscles fatigue or begin to break down, the ligament becomes increasingly vulnerable. It shifted my thinking from asking, "Is the ligament torn?" to asking, "Why did the body's protective system stop working?" That felt like a fundamentally different way of approaching injury.

The discussion of the mind-body connection also stayed with me. Today's athletes are taught to push through discomfort and constantly perform at their peak. As the parent of a Division I baseball player entering his sophomore year, I couldn't help but think about the pressure these young athletes face. Between social media, showcase culture, velocity expectations, and the prestige of playing Division I baseball, it's easy to lose sight of what the body is trying to communicate before a significant injury occurs. This book reminded me that sometimes the body whispers before it screams.

I am also an RN, so I naturally approach medicine with a clinical mindset. But in this situation, I am a mom first. My son is 19 years old, and while he is legally an adult, his father and I are still guiding forces in his life. We simply want what is best for him. That's why I chose to read this book before our appointment with Dr. Ahmad to review his MRI. I wanted to be as informed as possible so we could ask meaningful questions and help our son make the best decision based on knowledge rather than fear or assumptions.

This is not our family's first experience with Dr. Ahmad. We sought him out last year when my son was struggling with a shoulder issues because we wanted the very best. His reputation as one of the country's leading sports medicine surgeons is what initially brought us to him, but it was his thoughtful, conservative approach that earned our trust. He didn't look for a reason to operate; he looked for the right answer. He took the time to evaluate my son as a whole athlete, carefully explaining every option and recommending only what he genuinely believed was in my son's best interest.

What I remember most from that visit wasn't just the medical discussion. As the appointment came to an end, Dr. Ahmad put his hand on my son's shoulder and quietly told him that everything was going to be okay. In that moment, my husband, my son, and I all seemed to exhale at the same time. It's difficult to put into words, but his calm presence, genuine compassion, and confidence gave our family a sense of peace that we desperately needed. That moment has stayed with me ever since.

His experience caring for elite athletes, including serving as a physician for the New York Yankees, certainly inspires confidence, but what impressed me most was how he treated my son. He made him feel just as important as any professional athlete he has cared for. That says far more about his character than his résumé ever could.

Reading this book only reinforced everything I had already experienced with Dr. Ahmad as my son's physician. The thoughtful, evidence-based, and conservative approach that comes through in these pages is exactly what he brings into the exam room. As we prepare to meet with him again to review my son's MRI, I feel more informed, more thoughtful, and more confident, not because I know what the answer will be, but because I know we're asking the right questions.

I would wholeheartedly recommend this book to athletes, parents, coaches, athletic trainers, physical therapists, and healthcare professionals alike. Whether your goal is to prevent injury, better understand the throwing athlete, or navigate the difficult decision of whether surgery is truly necessary, this book offers an invaluable perspective. It doesn't just teach you about Tommy John injuries, it challenges you to think differently about them.

Thank you, Dr. Ahmad, for sharing your knowledge and your experience. As both a nurse and, more importantly, a mother, this book gave me something I didn't expect: hope that the right decision isn't always the fastest decision, and confidence that thoughtful, patient-centered medicine still exists.