Patient Stories

For Clemson University starting pitcher Dane Moehler, there was never any doubt that baseball was his future. The only son of retired MLB player, Brian Moehler, who pitched for 14 years in the major leagues – baseball is in his blood.

“Pitching was always what I was going to do,” Dane said. “My dad is the biggest influence in my life, and I have never thought about doing anything different.” 

A star high school pitcher in his hometown of Marietta, Georgia, Dane was recruited to play at Clemson. But, during a pre-season scrimmage his freshman year, a nagging tingle in his right elbow turned into an injury that took him out for the 2025 season.

“I had pitched well throughout the fall, but in our final scrimmage before opening weekend, I didn’t feel like myself,” Dane remembered. “I threw a 3-2 fastball, and I felt my elbow go.”

An MRI revealed that he had ruptured the ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in his pitching arm. 

“It was a helpless feeling and a million thoughts started running through my head,” Dane said. “I was panicking in the moment. I couldn’t believe the timing of it, and I was asking myself if there was anything I could have done to prevent it.”

But he quickly pivoted and shifted his mindset. Dane’s dad suffered the same injury in 2003 but recovered and returned to major league pitching the following year.

I remembered how well he handled the uncertainty, and how he just kept showing up and getting the work done,” Dane said. “It’s a blessing to have him in my life as my example and my biggest cheerleader, along with my mom.

Dane and his family turned to board certified orthopedic surgeon Timothy B. Griffith, MD (Atlanta, GA), who serves as the Shoulder, Elbow, and Knee Orthopedic Surgeon for the Atlanta Braves and as a team physician for the University of Georgia baseball team. Dr. Griffith reconstructed Dane’s UCL with what’s known as Tommy John surgery, which he then reinforced with the UCL InternalBrace™ procedure. 

“We combined the traditional Tommy John surgery with the InternalBrace procedure in a hybrid reconstruction,” Dr. Griffith said. “The goal is to provide extra structural integrity, help the injury heal faster and return the athlete to the game as quickly as possible.”¹^-³

UCL reconstruction surgery is now so common in baseball pitchers, Dr. Griffith says it’s almost a rite of passage for the high-level players.

“I never used to see these injuries in high school kids, but I am fixing them all the time now,” Dr. Griffith said. “The premium is on high elbow torque pitches. And even in younger players, baseball is played year-round now, which can lead to cumulative damage.”

But now, with the ever-improving techniques to repair UCL injuries, they are viewed as part of the game. 

“At the MLB combine this year, every single pitcher I saw had had a Tommy John surgery,” Dr. Griffith said. “In Dane’s case, he worked hard, followed the plan and his chances of succeeding in the major league are very high.” 

Dane had surgery in February 2025, and after a year of intensive rehab, he was back on the mound in 13 months. 

“There were days it was miserable, honestly,” Dane said. “I had everything in front of me, and I was afraid I had lost it all in the snap of a finger. But now, I’m actually glad the injury happened. I learned so much about staying focused and taking a major challenge day by day.”

Today, that mindset is helping him be even more effective on the mound, too. As a red shirt freshman, Dane says he is back pitching at full velocity, and he’s excited for what ahead at Clemson and beyond. 

“I feel strong and normal again,” Dane said. “I am ready to play in college and eventually in the major league. I’m back.”

References:

1.     Steffes MJ, Heaps BM, ElAttrache NS, Haselman WT. Outcomes after medial ulnar collateral ligament graft repair in professional baseball pitchers with minimum 2-year follow-up. Orthop J Sports Med. 2022;10(5):23259671221092728. doi:10.1177/23259671221092728

2.     Dines JS, Wright-Chisem J, ElAttrache NS. Ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction: The DANE technique. In: Cole BJ, Chahla, Gilat R, eds. Surgical Techniques of the Shoulder, Elbow, and Knee. Ed. 3. Elsevier; 1977:444-448

3.     Bachmaier S, Wijdicks CA, Verma NN, Higgins LD, Greiner S. Biomechanical Functional Elbow Restoration of Acute Ulnar Collateral Ligament Tears: The Role of Internal Bracing on Gap Formation and Repair Stabilization. Am J Sports Med. 2020;48(8):1884-1892. doi:10.1177/0363546520921174

Disclaimers:

The InternalBrace surgical technique is intended only to augment the primary repair/reconstruction by expanding the area of tissue approximation during the healing period and is not intended as a replacement for the native ligament. The InternalBrace technique is for use during soft tissue-to-bone fixation procedures and is not cleared for bone-to-bone fixation.

This is not medical advice and is not meant to be a substitute for the advice provided by a surgeon or other qualified medical professional on the use of these products. You should talk with your physician or health care provider for more information about your health condition and whether Arthrex products might be appropriate for you. The surgeon who performs any surgical procedure is responsible for determining and using the appropriate techniques for surgical procedures on each individual patient. Arthrex recommends that surgeons be trained on the use of any particular product before using it in surgery. A surgeon must always rely on their own professional medical judgment when deciding whether to use a particular product when treating a particular patient. A surgeon must always refer to the package insert, product label, and/or directions for use before using any Arthrex product. Postoperative management is patient-specific and dependent on the treating professional’s assessment. Individual results will vary and not all patients will experience the same postoperative activity level or outcomes. Products may not be available in all markets because product availability is subject to the regulatory approvals and medical practices in individual markets. Please contact Arthrex if you have questions about the availability of products in your area.

This real patient was compensated for the time he took to share his story.

Physician is a paid consultant of Arthrex, Inc.