Never underestimate the ability of a professional athlete to come back from injury.

I learned this in my first fantasy baseball league, back in 1995. The great steal in the draft (not by me) was Ron Gant, the Cincinnati outfielder who had missed the entire 1994 season with a broken leg. When that league broke up at the All Star break (that’s another story), Gant had tallied 20 home runs and 54 RBIs in just 64 games. He had an on-base percentage of .393 and slugged .613 for an OPS of 1.006. 

Now it’s Francisco Liriano‘s turn. In 2006 Liriano posted a 2.16 ERA, 12 wins, and 144 Ks in just 121 innings. Then he developed arm troubles, had Tommy John surgery and missed the entire 2007 season.

He was ineffective early this season and the Twins sent him to the minors. He hasn’t been bad in his most recent starts at AAA Rochester, so he’s back for another try in the majors. But the numbers aren’t all that reassuring. Compared to his previous minor league numbers, his walks are way up and his strikeouts are way down. Even my Ron Gant experience can’t convince me to pick him up.