“The first doctor I saw, Meister, looked at the MRIs and the first thing he said was, ‘They didn’t do a contract because of this?’” Webb said.

I understand Brandon’s a very interested party and the quote has yet to be corroborated by Dr Meister, but if accurate, this strikes me as something of a bombshell. When this came to light a while back, the Dbacks suggested the contract was pulled because insurers indicated concerns (red flags).

At the time, I said:

… We lack context for these red flags (ie how abnormal is it for an insurer to detail concerns, downsides, risks when assessing any multi-million dollar “property”?)
… There is no evidence to date that insurers refused to cover Brandon Webb.
… There is no evidence to date that insurers assessed BW as riskier than pitchers at large (or pitchers who’ve thrown 1300 IP, etc)

In the above quote, let’s be clear about who “they” are. Insurance companies dont write MLB player contracts. Major league clubs make that call. And it sounds like an experienced specialist may be surprised by that decision. Doesnt mean he’s right. But he’s surprised.

To be fair, Brandon says he “doesnt feel good” and certainly didnt pitch well on Opening Day, but I think Meister’s alleged reaction is interesting, especially since none of the specialists recommend surgery.