As bad as the news was, Johnny Venters only knew one way to react when Dr. James Andrews told him his left elbow was damaged again, that the last operation had failed and that he would require yet more Tommy John surgery.
The Braves reliever processed the news, decided to go through the process a third time and to try and pitch again.
“It really wasn’t that big of a question for me,” Venters said Friday in the Braves clubhouse in his first remarks after meeting with Andrews in his Florida clinic the day before. “My wife (Viviana) was with me at Dr. Andrews’ (office). We sat there and it never really crossed my mind to retire, to give up and quit.
“If I was 38, it might be a little different. I’m only 29. So hopefully, I have my age working for me. We’ll see. I’m going to give it a shot.”
The odds on coming back from two ligament transplant surgeries are long. Triple TJ stories are even rarer, Jason Isringhausen and Jose Rijo the two primary success stories.
“Why not? Give it a shot,” manager Fredi Gonzalez said. “There have been some (positive) cases. He’s still a young man. I’m pulling for him.”
Venters hasn’t pitched since 2012, undergoing his second TJ surgery 15 months ago. He had his first procedure as a minor leaguer in 2005 and shortly established himself as the Braves’ reliable left-handed solution in the late innings. He made 79 appearances in 2010, a league-high 85 appearances in 2011 and 66 in 2012.
Why the latest procedure failed, Andrews could not explain.
“I think he was surprised that it failed so early,” said Venters, who had developed persistent elbow pain when he tried to ramp up is rehab throwing sessions. “It wasn’t like I was throwing in games or anything like that. I think it was one of those things that it was going to fail no matter what. I think we did everything right with the training staff and my therapy and throwing program. I think we did everything for it to succeed.”
Timing for the surgery or who may perform it have not been determined. A steady stream of teammates came by Venters’ locker before Friday night’s game to offer mugs and sympathy.
“Throughout the whole process, I thought I was going to be fine,” he said. “When (Andrews) said, ‘Sorry, you’ve got to do this again,’ it was a blow. It obviously hurt. It’s just one of those things. So, we’ll see. I’m not going to give up or anything.”
