After experiencing some discomfort in his throwing arm, Matthew Helms went to the doctor in September 2015 and discovered he needed Tommy John Surgery.
On September 30, 2015 he had the infamous surgery to repair /reconstruct the UCL and remove a bone chip. Matthew’s surgery was performed by Dr. James E. Fleischli at OrthoCarolina. The procedure and recovery process would require him to miss the 2015 Fall Season with On Deck and the 2016 Spring Season with Marvin Ridge High School.
Matthew began an intense physical therapy regiment with Alan Tyson at Architech Sports in October 2015 to present. In February 2016, he started his throwing program and was able to return to competition with the O’s in June 2016, but was not yet allowed to get on the mound. He stepped back on the mound in a live game for the first time in September 2016 and threw 25 pitches. He finished the fall season as the shutdown arm on the 2018 O’s pitching staff and was up to a pitch count of 65 and featured a fastball that was sitting in the mid 80’s and climbing! Thanks to a phenomenal team of doctors, physical therapists, and a lot of hard work, Matthew’s future on the field is once again very bright.
