Will Brandon Webb ever return to his previous form?

From 2003 to 2008, Brandon Webb was among the top 3 pitchers in the National League. Over that span, he went 87-62 with a 3.24 ERA. He finished 3rd in the Rookie of the Year voting in 2003, going 10-9 with a 2.84 ERA and 172 K's in 28 starts, 1 relief apperance, and 180.1 IP. In '04, Webb went just 7-16, but that was because he was on a terrible team that lost a staggering 111 games. He posted a 3.59 ERA and 164 K's in 35 starts and 208 IP. If Webb did have an Achilles' heel that season, it was his control: his walk total was 119, tops in the NL, an average of 5.1 per 9 innings, and he threw 17 wild pitches, also tops in the NL. Still, his 7 wins were 2nd on the team to Randy Johnson's improbable 16 wins on one of the worst teams ever. Webb didn't let the 16 losses haunt him in '05. He had a good year, going 14-12 with a 3.54 ERA and 172 K's in 33 starts and 229 IP. He improved his walk rate to just 2.3 per 9. '05 served as a stepping stone for years to come.

In '06, Webb came out of nowhere (at least in the eyes of non-Diamondbacks fans) to win the NL Cy Young Award. He went 16-8 with a 3.10 ERA and 178 K's in 33 starts and 235 IP. He was tied for 1st in the league in wins, 3rd in ERA, and 10th in strikeouts. He walked jsut 1.9 batters per 9 innings and led the NL with a 0.6 HR/9 ratio. In addition, he had 5 complete games, including 3 shutouts (in 3 consecutive starts), tops in the NL. The funny thing is that Webb had a better season in '07, but "only" finished 2nd in the Cy Young voting. He went 18-10 with a 3.01 ERA and 194 K's in 34 starts and 236.1 IP, most in the NL. His walk rate went up to 2.7 per 9, but he allowed just 0.5 homers per 9, and he improved his H/9 to 8.0 (it was 8.3 in '06). Although Webb had an arguably better season than his Cy Young season of '06, he finished a distant second to unanimous winner Jake Peavy (19-6, 2.54 ERA, 240 K's). By '07, Webb had proved himself as a great starter, one of the best in the majors. He only continued that in '08, going 22-7 with a 3.30 ERA and 183 K's in 34 starts and 226.2 IP. The 22 wins led the majors. Webb had slightly fewer strikeouts, but he was still great, but in '09, everything changed.

Webb started Opening Day 2009 for Arizona. He went 4 innings, giving up 6 runs, before being placed on the DL the next day with a right shoulder injury. He missed the rest of '09 and all of '10. (He has begun pitching in instructional league.) Will he ever be the same?

Webb's exact shoulder injury was right shoulder bursitis. Bursitis is when a bursa (a cavity within a joint) becomes swollen. It's not a terribly serious injury (think 15-day DL), but it often comes about after a rotator cuff injury, which you would think must have been Webb's injury, considering he has missed so much time. Instead he sprained his major teres muscle, but basically the same effect occured. Although it was thought as a strain for nearly all of '09, it eventually required surgery.

Webb is not the same pitcher. The former NL Cy Young had his arm-slot was lowered, potentially changing his delivery. Since he's come back, he's been throwing high-80's. Webb is a free agent. Is he worth the risk for a contender? Will some pitching-deprived team sign him to an incentives-based deal? Well, we'll have to see what happens.