Froom completes comeback

By Carson Herbert
SDSU Sports Information Student Assistant

It was just the second week of Summit League play on March 25, 2017, against Oral Roberts when right-handed starting pitcher Ryan Froom took the mound in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Little did he know that would be the last time he would pitch in a regular season collegiate baseball game for nearly 700 days.

Froom lasted 1 1/3 innings before he felt and heard a pop in his arm. He would go on to throw another pitch, but it went straight into the ground, which convinced him to call the the trainers out to the mound and take a look.

A loose feeling in his elbow in the ORU training room five minutes later signaled surgery would be needed. Froom visited with Oral Roberts team doctors the next day, who confirmed Tommy John surgery would be needed.

"When my trainer had first told me, I was pretty down but I still had a sliver of hope that it wasn't torn because we were seeing the doctors the next day even though it was believed that it was torn," Froom said.

Froom, who had pitched in the Northwoods league for the Waterloo Bucks the previous summer, didn't put the blame on just one cause.

"I don't necessarily think it was just one thing," he said. "I think it might have been a combination of a lot of things like I hadn't been working on my forearm strength along with throwing a lot of innings in summer ball that year and the year before, so I think that was probably a big part of it."

His ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in his right elbow was torn, leaving Froom with doubts he was ever going to pitch again after hearing what the doctors said.

LONG RECOVERY
In surgery that took place in May of 2017, a ligament from Froom's knee was placed into his elbow. Casts were worn for a period of time on both his arm and on his leg.

During the recovery process, Froom was limited when he reached the beginning throwing stages.

"I had a huge protocol for throwing and everything, which I completed, and then I went and played summer ball and was on like a 35-pitch count," he said. "I gradually started increasing it."

Froom made three starts for the Bucks in the Northwoods league last summer, going 7 2/3 innings. striking out seven batters and giving up just five hits with a 2.34 earned run average.

"It was pretty awesome," Froom said on returning to the mound. "Summer ball is different than NCAA. It's a lot more relaxed. Going into that first game, I was pretty nervous because I hadn't really faced live hitters in a long time, so it was fun."

Now as a sixth-year senior with the scar from surgery visible on his arm, Froom brings a veteran presence to the Jackrabbits' pitching staff.

"It definitely still hurts some times, but I can throw and everything just fine. It's just not the same as it was, which obviously it won't be after a surgery but it's just a unique feeling."

BACK ON THE MOUND
In his first start with the Jacks since the injury, Froom went five innings against UT Martin in Russellville, Arkansas, Feb. 16, allowing six hits, two earned runs and striking out five batters in a no-decision.

"I would classify it as one of the worst and best times of my life at the same time because obviously everything got taken away from me, but then it also allowed me to focus on things outside of baseball, which I hadn't before," Froom said on what he learned from the experience. "It kind of led me to what I am interested in now which is the medical side of things."

Froom is currently pursuing his master's degree in athletic training. He plans on continuing his education and becoming a physician's assistant or a physical therapist.

After being tagged with the loss in a three-inning start Feb. 23 against Northeastern in Port Charlotte, Florida, Froom returned to the win column for the first time in nearly two years by pitching 5 2/3 strong innings in a March 2 victory over Missouri.

"We are excited to have Ryan back out on the field after his recovery from Tommy John surgery," SDSU head coach Rob Bishop said. "He had a solid fall and offseason and looks to be a big part of our pitching staff this spring. His first two outings this spring showed mixed results, but we have confidence that Ryan will return to form after getting a few more outings under his belt."

TEAMMATES, OTHERS PROVIDE SUPPORT
Despite the long process, Froom had the motivation after surgery that he could get through the recovery phase.

"I just wanted to come back and prove to myself that I could do it because it's a long, long process," he said.

Froom received plenty of support after the incident.

"A lot of people reached out to me after it happened," he said. "I had some old coaches that had talked to me, my dad, obviously the coaches here and a few of the players and other people that had Tommy John surgery talked to me about it."

Former Jackrabbit pitcher Landon Busch, who also had Tommy John surgery and tore his UCL in the same location, was one of the individuals who offered advice and helped Froom get through the process.

Unlike Busch, who was rejected for another year of eligibility following the injury, it was announced that Froom would be granted another year of eligibility in May 2018. Froom was expecting it based on conversations with the SDSU athletics administrative staff, but was nervous based on what happened to Busch.

"I was really pumped," he said. "It gave me another opportunity to play again, which I was happy for."

It was obvious Froom had potential to boost the Jackrabbit rotation when he first arrived on campus. As a prep senior, Froom posted a 0.77 ERA and had 42 strikeouts in 27 1/3 innings for St. Louis Park High School in the Twin Cities metropolitan area.

Before suffering the arm injury, Froom was off to a solid start to the 2017 season as the team's No. 1. He was named Summit League Pitcher of the Week twice and was 3-2 in six starts with 20 total strikeouts.

"That was probably the hardest part," Froom said on being sidelined and not being able to pitch. "I was just in Brookings the whole year so I was just doing my rehab while they are all playing and everything and I was just sitting on the sidelines watching. So it was pretty tough. You try to be a good teammate but obviously you want to be out there."

Froom enters this weekend's series at Oral Roberts ranked in a tie for fourth place in program history with 39 games started and also entered the week in fourth place on the SDSU career charts with 219 2/3 innings pitched.

-GoJacks.com-

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