Morris is on the comeback trail

Morris hopes for another chance in 2011.

(Photo: Lianna Holub)

Cleveland Indians minor league left-handed pitching prospect Ryan Morris is on the comeback trail. He just got married on January 8th, celebrated his 23rd birthday on January 10th, and looks like he will go into spring training this March as healthy as he has been in almost two years.

Things at the moment for Morris are definitely looking great.

It is a far cry from where Morris was six months ago as left shoulder soreness limited him to just 11 total appearances between rookie level Arizona and Low-A Lake County last season and 20.0 total innings pitched.

Last year Morris was returning from a left shoulder injury he suffered in July of 2009 that sidelined him the rest of that season. The shoulder problem stemmed from tightness in the back of his shoulder that caused the humerus bone between his left elbow and shoulder to start to roll to the front. He rehabbed all of the 2009 offseason and continued his rehab throughout spring training last year and into extended spring training before being activated in June.

Morris has a bit of a funky delivery, which is what likely caused the injury. To combat the issue he and the Indians worked on his delivery mechanics last year to try and get him to avoid pulling his left hand so deep behind his back. By not letting his hand get so deep and also staying inside with the ball when he separates his hands it helped take some stress off of his shoulder area.

Even with the changes, Morris started experiencing pain again in late July and was shut down again for the rest of the season.

"It is frustrating as I was only able to throw about 20 innings [last season], but the good news is we finally got everything squared away and figured out exactly what is going on with the arm,” Morris said in a recent interview with the IPI.

After more evaluations the Indians found that Morris had really limited range of motion in his left arm – only about 45 degrees – which was not allowing him to be free and easy with his delivery like he was before. He underwent a minor arthroscopic surgery on his shoulder in September to release the joint capsule in his left shoulder in order to give him more range of motion.

Morris feels like the surgery was a success and is just what he needed to finally get back on the mound at 100%.

“The surgery was a great success and so far seems to be just what I needed,” Morris said. “My range of motion is far greater than expected and my shoulder is stronger than it has ever been. I've been doing my rehab here at home in Charlotte at Architech Sports and Physical Therapy and the Indians have been very happy with the success we have had. After my honeymoon my wife and I will be heading out to Arizona so I can continue my rehab with the Indians’ trainers and staff.”

Morris completed two months of stretching and strengthening exercises and recently started throwing again and is expected to be back pitching this spring. Where he may pitch next season or what role he pitches in is all secondary at this point as he is just happy to be throwing again and feeling healthy.

“I would love to be a starter and I love starting and I love that routine, but whatever is going to get me to the big leagues I am more than willing to do,” Morris said. “I could definitely see a bullpen role just with what we have in this organization as we have a lot of good starters and not a lot of lefty relievers. It could be something that works out and we'll see what role they want me to pitch in...but I just feel good."

While Morris has not pitched a lot in the past year, he has continued to work out to strengthen his lower half and is up to 210 pounds, which is 35 pounds heavier than his listed weight of 175 pounds on MinorLeagueBaseball.com. In the limited chances he got to pitch last season and in his bullpen and rehab sessions he also continued to fine tune his mechanics.

Morris knows that time and chances are starting to run out in his professional career, so hopefully his steps backward the past two seasons with injuries and surgery will lead to one giant leap forward in 2011.

"I wouldn't say it was a complete waste of a year [last season], but it was frustrating that I couldn't get this all worked out on my own,” Morris said. “I am glad we finally figured it out. I am still young, so hopefully this thing gets me rolling. I still feel really good about coming back next year. I am just hoping that I can hit the ground running and get back to what I do best."

Follow Tony and the Indians Prospect Insider on Twitter @TonyIPI. His latest book the 2010 Cleveland Indians Top 100 Prospects & More is also available for purchase on his site for a special year end closeout sale of $10.00 (including shipping and handling stateside).

Posted in: Ryan Morris