Jon Rice Looking to Make a Strong Comeback Pitching His Senior Year After Tommy John Surgery

He burst onto the Hopedale varsity baseball scene with a vengeance, putting up numbers like no other, but before he could back-up his first full season he was being put on the shelf for an extended period of time. As a freshman Rice took to the mound for the Blue Raiders where he posted an 8-0 record with an ERA of 0.74. The first year pitcher was trusted so much that he was given the ball during the Division 4 Central Championship game against Oxford, the number one seed. Hopedale captured the title with a 3-2 victory.
Although Rice owned the 2015 season, he could not get going in 2016.
“That summer (between his freshman and sophomore seasons) I was having some pain. I had it examined and they sent me to physical therapy, but that didn’t seem to work,” Rice said. “Doctors eventually told me that it was damaged and it would need to be repaired. I was devastated to get that news but I had to make a decision whether to have surgery or wait.”
Ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction, also known as Tommy John surgery (TJS), is a surgical graft procedure in which the ulnar collateral ligament in the medial elbow is replaced with either a tendon from elsewhere from the patient’s own body, or the use of a tendon from the donated tissue of a cadaver. The procedure is common among collegiate and professional athletes in several sports, most notably baseball.
To have Tommy John surgery at such a young age was something that the Hopedale native had to think about; having the surgery would put him on the self for about a year and a half, but if he did go through with it he had a really good chance of continuing his baseball career. Rice opted for the surgery as he was hoping to pitch in college and maybe even the major leagues.
Having begun his baseball career in little league at the age of 4 Rice always found himself on the mound pitching. He believes it was because he threw so hard and everyone wanted him to pitch; the more he pitched, the more he liked it.
Having played in the AAU Baseball league, his coach used him in relief one game and quickly realized that Rice should be starting. Midway through the eighth grade Rice was brought up to the varsity team where he primarily was used as an outfielder and batted on occasion. During the last game of the season Hopedale Coach Josh Cresenzi had Rice start his first ever game; a game in which he won.
Playing varsity baseball as a middle school athlete could be somewhat of an over daunting task, but having a brother on the squad made it that much easier.
“Playing on the varsity team as an eighth grader was a little nerve racking, but having my older brother Joe (who is three years older than Jon) helped me through it,” Rice said. “Hopedale is a small town and everyone knows everyone, so I already knew most of the team.”
Rice got into a handful of games as a sophomore, but none on the mound do to his elbow issues before deciding on the repair.
“He really didn’t know what was wrong at first, but we didn’t wasn’t to take any chances so those games he did play in he played the outfield,” Coach Crescenzi said.
Last spring the Blue Raiders qualified for the Division 4 Central Tournament but were eliminated in the first round 3-2 to Tahanto with Rice sitting on the bench. This year Hopedale went 12-6 and have already secured an 11-7 win over Tyngsboro. While Rice has not been able to pitch all that much this season he has seen action in centerfield since coming back from his surgery.
“The past two seasons he would have been our number one pitcher,” Crescenzi said. “But just to have Jon in the lineup in some capacity gives us a better chance to win.”
Although Rice has been playing more outfield and the occasional first base this season he has finally started to get back onto the mound with the help of his physical therapist.
“My arm has felt better than ever and my physical therapist has allowed me to pitch on strict pitch counts,” Rice said. “Following the high school season I’ll be playing for the Milford Legion team this summer and my physical therapist has already been in contact with them.”
Looking to come back as strong as he was in his initial season pitching for the Blue Raiders, Rice would like to win the Dual Valley Conference while doing as much as he can for the team in his senior campaign.