Core Daily
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Major League Breakthrough
The 2008 Major League Baseball season has seen its share of breakout performances, from the storybook rise of the Tampa Bay Rays to the remarkable run by the Milwaukee Brewers since acquiring CC Sabathia.
But what’s inspired you the most? Before you cast your vote, recall the rich history of our great American pastime, where the impossible is possible and barriers are meant to be shattered, and then consider the following, maybe the greatest untold story of the year in baseball: Sue Falsone.
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Amid the sea of blue and grey uniforms in the visiting dugout, a petite blonde in black pants and a crisp white top moved confidently among the eager bat boys and solemn coaching staff. The Los Angeles Dodgers were in Philadelphia on this hot August day to battle the Phillies, but for Sue Falsone (pictured above), this Saturday in the park was just another busy workday since becoming a trainer for the Dodgers last fall.
Her hire gives her the distinction of being the first-ever female physical therapist to work for a major league ball club. (Though as Greg Maddux wryly notes, “there was a massage chick in San Diego.”) But Sue doesn’t have time to think about things like history and precedent. She's too busy helping her players loosen their hips, strengthen their cores, and keep injury-free.
The Dodgers’ playoff bid means that Sue’s busy summer will extend into October. Not only is she training and traveling with the Dodgers, she’s also working as director of Performance Physical Therapy at Athletes’ Performance Institute.
For Sue, this means 70 to 80 hour work weeks, lots of time logged traveling between games, practices, and the API office in Tempe, Arizona, and even more hours spent online and on a cell phone. It means taking interviews during batting practice, sending emails when most of us are passed out in front of Conan, and trying to squeeze in a social life while spending half of the season on the road.
Raised in Buffalo, New York, Sue played sports with limited success. “I was a very below-average athlete,” she admits with a laugh. Still, it was her participation in athletics that lead her to a career in physical therapy. After a high school soccer injury left her sidelined, her interest was piqued by the rehabilitation she had to attend. “I had thought I’d be a doctor or some other medical profession,” she says, “and I took a liking to physical therapy.”
After attending Daemon College in Buffalo, Sue traveled south, to North Carolina, for her masters. She stayed to work with the women’s basketball team, but even though the milder winters in Chapel Hill beat any Buffalo January, she wanted an even warmer climate. “I packed up everything and moved to Arizona, where it was sunny,” she said. She arrived with great credentials but no job. While reading the paper, she came across a story about players who worked with API Founder and Chairman Mark Verstegen.
“I saw where he trained, and learned that Mark was looking for a physical therapist. I guess I was in the right place at the right time,” she said. Since joining AP in 2001, she’s worked with elite athletes from all sports.
Last year, according to the Los Angeles Times, Dodgers head trainer Stan Conte admitted that “his staff’s shortcomings limited Manager Grady Little’s options in the late months of the season.” Conte promptly decided to shake up the training staff in favor of a more “preventative” approach that would keep players healthy and in rotation, giving the team more flexibility. A big part of that shake-up was bringing on Falsone as physical therapist.
“We’d been working with Sue and API for years,” says Conte. “We were impressed with her methods and results.” He was especially impressed with her ability to contain potential debilitating injuries. “We’re now starting to realize that, more than anything, baseball is a rotational sport,” he says, twisting his trunk to demonstrate the range of motion essential to batting, pitching, and throwing. “Sue’s great at working with lower back injuries; taking an injury that’s small and keeping it from getting larger, while still allowing the guys to go out there and play.”
And while Sue is the first female PT on a major league team, she hasn’t noticed any special treatment from players or the staff. “It’s just a great environment all around, and I’m just a part of the team,” she said. “I don’t really think about that stuff; I just do my job and have fun.”
That the players seem reluctant to sing her praises has less to do with her gender than her job title. The problem with being a major league baseball PT is that, no matter how good you are, no one wants to admit hanging out with you. Players make their living off their knees, hips, and shoulders, and admitting anything less than perfect physical conditioning can make even the toughest big-leaguers nervous. So while it’s hard to get anyone in the Dodger’s clubhouse to admit to being under Falsone’s care, you can bet that the entire team is glad to have her.
“Most athletes have bumps and bruises they play though,” says Falsone, “But no one wants anyone to know their issues. You wouldn’t want to have your medical history broadcast on the evening news.”
Still, the players seems to agree on the value Sue has brought to the team, even while denying any real interaction with her. Nomar Garciaparra, who has worked with both Falsone and API for years, is more forthcoming. “It’s been great having her, and having the presence of a Physical Therapist in the clubhouse,” he says.
Her first year on the team has been exhilarating – and exhausting, which helps give her perspective on the players she treats. “I can see first-hand what they go through,” says Falsone. “People turn on their TV and see today we’re in Pittsburgh, tomorrow in LA. That doesn’t include the non-glamorous stuff like travel. I’m not even a player and I’m tired.”
To keep her energy up on the road, Sue tries to be even more active. “As long as I get my workout in, I’m ok,” she says. “If all I’ve done is work, that’s not ok, and I’m tired.” And although the rigors of the road make it hard to eat right all the time, nutrition plays an important role in her energy levels. “I can really tell how what I eat affects me. Everyone has days where you eat better than others, but when I eat junk I can feel it,” she says.
Though she’s more than busy with clinical work, administrative work, and her duties with API, Sue still tries to make time to enjoy her time on the road – whether that’s visiting family and friends when she travels to familiar cities or exploring those cities she doesn’t know well – in Philadelphia, she went out with family after the game; in Pittsburgh she made a trip to the Carnegie Museum.
With the Dodgers facing off against the Cubs in the first round of the playoffs, Sue can expect at least another hectic week – maybe longer if California-based fans get their wish for a “freeway series” between the Dodgers and Angels. After the last bat has been silenced, she can look forward to a relaxed work week of only 40 hours.
“Right now, I have about one day off a month,” she says. “It’s a bit like two full-time jobs.” Not that she’s complaining. As a leader in physical therapy and a history-making woman with front-row seats to a winning baseball team, Sue Falsone is having a very good season.
