Playing an injured player--ethical dilemma

Will Ty Lawson play in the ACC Tournament? This is the $64,000 question. Should he play? That's a complicated answer.

During this summer, I played in a softball league with my Church. There were 10 teams in our league, and during the Regular Season my team finished 7-5. I'm not a horrible athelete, but I'm not a great one either. I am 37 years old, and I had not played competititve Softball since I was 25 years old. There's a big difference between 25 and 37.

First off, I am not as fast. When I was 25, I probably weighed around 160 lbs. Last summer my weight was around 185. Weight, especially fat, will slow you down.

Second, I might be a tad stronger at age 37, but my body's mechanics have changed. I used to have a rifle for a left arm, but now when I throw my shoulder aches. It's not muscle hurting, but it's probably a rotator cuff issue. I can still throw the ball into the infield, but it's not nearly as accurate nor does the ball have much mustard on it. I can still hit the ball, but I've become more of a "punch and judy" hitter. When I was 25, I pulled the ball over into right field (I'm a lefty). Now I prefer to hit up the middle with solid contact. I think my batting average was a tad over .500, which is not bad (nor is it really good).

During the season, I had numerous injuries. During the first inning of the first game, I pulled my left hamstring. I knew my leg was hurt, but I thought it was nothing more than mind over matter. Later that day I had to talk to some youth, and everyone was asking why I was limping. I told them my leg was cramping badly...I actually thought that was the case. It wasn't until 2 days later that I knew something was wrong. My wife noticed that the back of my leg was totally black. I had pulled a hamstring, and to walk on it was somewhat painful. I decided not to play on the leg the next weekend (couldn't if I wanted to). I came back the next weekend, and I was definitely slower than I was before the season started. My hamstring didn't fully heal until after the season.

In the middle of the season, I sprained my right wrist. My entire hand swelled up twice its normal size. I couldn't put on my outfield glove--it was too painful. Unfortunately our team had to play a double-header that weekend, and my injury occured during the first game. If I didn't play the second game, our team would have forfeited. Instead, I played the game right-handed. I played catcher (usually I played Left-Center or Right-Center). Everytime the ball reached me, I slipped off my glove under my right armpit and threw the ball with my left hand back to the pitcher. Unfortunately, we lost the game, but it wasn't due to a forfeit.

Going back to my point...there's a lot of criticism when a player doesn't play when they are hurt. Every injury is different, and I have no problem when a player misses a game due to an injury. Several people felt that Lawson should have returned to the lineup earlier last year, but I wasn't one of them. Ty Lawson is a strong competititor, and if he didn't play, it was because his body wasn't ready. In this case, Lawson's injury probably helped our team, giving Quinton Thomas a chance to play in game action. When Lawson returned, our bench was more solid as a result.

Injuries are a part of the game. Players know their bodies much better than their coaches or their trainers. Some people question a players "drive" when they don't bounce back from an injury, but I don't buy it. College basketball players push their bodies to the limit continuously during the season, and a person can't do that unless they have that "drive".

If Lawson doesn't play in the ACC Tournament, please accept the fact that he's injured. We should respect our players regardless of their condition.

As far as last year's softball season, our team was seeded 5th. We ended up playing in the Championship game, getting waxed by the best team in the conference. I played that game beaten up (I had a bone bruise on my heel that game--I looked like an old man out there). I went 2 for 3 in that game with 2 RBI's. My defensive game, which used to be my strong point, was pathetic. I'm ready for next season!