HOLBROOK, N.Y. — Stony Brook right-hander
Brian Morrisey has emphatically announced his successful return from Tommy John surgery.
Morrisey, who underwent the elbow procedure on Feb. 5, 2019 — 10 days before that year's college season opener — successfully returned this past spring, making five appearances (one start) during the Seawolves' abbreviated season.
He has hit another gear during summer-league play in the Blue Chip Collegiate Baseball League.
The 6-foot-5 Morrisey tossed a seven-inning shutout on Saturday at PAL Stadium in Holbrook during which he limited opposing batters to three hits and struck out 12.
He boasts a miniscule 0.38 ERA and 0.68 WHIP while striking out 41 and walking seven in 23 2/3 innings spanning six appearances (four starts) this summer for first-place HDMH-Navy. The team is 19-1 this summer.
Morrisey was named the league's Pitcher of the Week on Monday.
Saturday's performance marked his first complete game since his days at Commack High School, albeit in a seven-inning game this time.
"Coming into this league, I definitely wanted to dominate, just feel good out there and get a consistent amount of innings," Morrisey said. "Especially after surgery, knowing when you're going to pitch is a good thing. It helped me get a feel for all of my pitches. I've just been feeling really good this summer."
In Saturday's outing, Morrisey was particularly pleased with his curveball, which he was able to throw with the same arm speed and release point as his fastball — making it challenging for batters to detect out of his hand.
"My arm speed, my body, when I broke my hands — I felt like everything was on time, just as my fastball was," Morrisey said. "And it was really effective."
His fastball velocity has steadily increased as well since the start of the college season.
Morrisey's recovery time from Tommy John surgery was less than the typical year. That's because the elbow ligament fully tore off at the base rather than mid-ligament, allowing doctors to reattach it to the bone without having to perform a transplant.
"Last fall I kind of built up. I got to throw live at-bats by the end of the fall," Morrisey said. "I then took a break and started the throwing program everybody was on. When the season came, I felt good. … Every outing I was getting more and more loose and throwing harder and harder after the time off. I remember earlier in the season, even throwing indoors to our guys, I was more low-80s to mid-80s mph."
By the trip to Southeastern Louisiana during Week 3 of Stony Brook's season, teammates spotted 90 and 91 mph on the scoreboard. This summer, the velocity at which he has topped out has been on par … or even better.
"I'm definitely not sitting mid-80s anymore, like early in the spring," Morrisey said. "But even with the velocity, I've just been trying to hit my spots with my primary pitch every time and be able to throw my second and third pitches for strikes. That's something Coach (Tyler) Kavanaugh preaches to us."
