No MRI for Edinson Volquez

Texas Rangers pitcher Edinson Volquez will not throw for the next 4 to 6 weeks, per the beat guys on Twitter, who say that Volquez has also opted not to get an MRI on his sprained elbow at this time.

Volquez, who was placed on the disabled list after his second start with what has been called a sprained elbow, missed much of 2017 and all of 2018 after undergoing his second Tommy John surgery. The 35 year old has said that if his UCL has torn again, he will retire rather than have a third TJS.

Volquez will apparently undergo an MRI after his rest period if his elbow is feeling better. One can ask why Volquez wouldn’t do it now, but I would presume that he would prefer to put off the potential day of reckoning, since it wouldn’t impact how he would handle the next few weeks anyway. Right now it’s Schrodinger’s UCL, being in a superpositioned state of being both torn and not torn until the MRI is done. By waiting, Volquez can maintain that unknowing state for a while longer, giving him the hope of being able to return while he sees how his elbow responds to rest.