The wild story of prized pitching prospect Brady Aiken just got wilder: Aiken, 18, announced Thursday that he had Tommy John surgery this week, seven months after he failed to come to terms with the Houston Astros as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2014 amateur draft.
At the time, there was a dispute about the health of Aiken's elbow. The two sides had reportedly reached an agreement with a $6.5 million signing bonus. But after Aiken's physical, the Astros said they weren't happy with what they saw in his elbow. Believing he would need Tommy John surgery soon, the Astros reportedly lowered their offer to $5 million.
Aiken's camp scoffed, saying his arm was fine. The Astros never came back to their original offer, and Aiken went unsigned as the deadline to sign draft picks passed. Now we see who was right.
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Rather than enroll in college at UCLA (where he had a scholarship offer), Aiken opted to attend the IMG Academy, a private athletic training and education center in Florida, and prepare for the 2015 MLB draft. When he pitched in his first game with IMG last week, Aiken says he knew something was wrong.
Aiken announced all this in an essay for The Player's Tribune. Here's a passage in which he says he has no regrets about passing on the Astros' deal. One part even seems like a dig at the organization.
Since last summer, a lot of people have wondered how I could have turned down a multi-million-dollar signing bonus after being picked first in the Draft. Now, I know they’ll probably be wondering about it again. I can honestly say I don’t regret not signing. It was a very difficult decision, but it also was an informed decision based on circumstances only a few people know the truth about. My family and I planned for all the possible outcomes. We weighed the pros and cons, talked with friends and mentors and doctors whose opinions we value and discussed it over a number of family dinners. This wasn’t a decision we made lightly.
The money wasn’t the only factor to consider. I wanted to play somewhere I felt comfortable, with a support system I felt would lay the groundwork for a successful and long career. Making sure I had that in place was worth the frustration of not being able to get on with my career sooner.
My family was smart, and we accounted for all of the possible risks. Having gone through this process, I really encourage other players to take the time to be fully educated about what they are getting into and to plan for the unexpected. Having a solid plan helped me through the ups and downs. Even now, I know I made the decision that made the most sense for my future.
Rehabbing from Tommy John surgery is fairly common these days, so there's no reason to think Aiken won't get another chance to have an MLB career. Other teams drafted players last year who were in the middle of their Tommy John rehab, so it's hardly a Scarlet Letter that will end his career. But the last year certainly has delayed Aiken's big-league dreams.
Now, as watch Aiken try to comeback from this, we'll be left to wonder "what it?" — what if he had signed with the Astros and rehabbed his injury under their care, with their money?
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Mike Oz is the editor of Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at mikeozstew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @MikeOz
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