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VIERA, Fla. -- Mike Hinckley entered 2005 as Washington's top pitching
prospect, with club brass envisioning the possibility that he'd be pitching
in the nation's capital at some point during the year. But he ended the
season on an operating table in Cincinnati, far from fulfilling the lofty
expectations that were placed on the southpaw.
Hinckley had elevated through the Nationals' system in three-plus seasons
after he was selected in the third round of the 2001 First-Year Entry Draft.
He was 32-13 with a 2.80 ERA in 77 appearances (74 starts) and had held
opponents to a .240 batting average heading into last year. But after
suffering a strained shoulder in Spring Training, Hinckley didn't make his
first start until May, and even then, it was obvious that his very valuable
left shoulder was not acting the way it should.

"I stretched it and rehabbed it and I felt good," Hinckley said Tuesday
morning at Space Coast Stadium. "But when I got into the season, the power
and the strength weren't there. I knew there was something wrong with it, and
I knew that something needed to be done. I was cutting off on my pitches and
my command wasn't there.

"The rehab obviously didn't help all the way. The 0-2 curve was my strikeout
pitch and I was getting the ball hit for doubles, because they were just
hanging way out there. My curveball has to have bite and I wasn't getting
it."

Just look at his line for the proof. Opponents hit .293 against him last
season while his ERA jumped to 4.93. Hinckley, who went 3-9 in 22 games (21
starts), averaged 5.64 strikeouts per nine innings after fanning an average
of 7.76 through his first four seasons. He also walked a career-high 51.

The injury also would explain one American League scout's assessment of
Hinckley's 2005 season. The scout, who saw him pitch several times, was
unimpressed with what had once been a stellar curveball or a
better-than-average fastball.

"Based on what I saw, he has to learn how to separate his pitches," the scout
said. "He can't go to the big leagues without separating his pitches."

So after going 1-6 in his final 12 appearances, Hinckley and the Nationals
decided it was time to have his shoulder fixed. He went to see Reds team
physician Dr. Timothy Kremchek, who performed an arthroscopic procedure to
release the posterior capsule in Hinckley's shoulder.

"I never imagined I would need surgery," Hinckley said. "But Kremchek looked
at it and said I had to have it done immediately to release the capsule. I'm
confident now, and I'm working hard, and I hope I'm right there where I left
off [in 2004]."

There were some positives that came out of 2005, though. On the field, the
injury forced Hinckley to rely more on his changeup. He learned a new grip
for the pitch and it became so effective that it is now an integral part of
his repertoire, one he doesn't plan on abandoning even if his curveball and
fastball return to form.

Off the field, Hinckley got married just before his surgery. Though he and
his wife, LeAnna, spent several weeks shuttling back and forth between
Oklahoma and Ohio, Hinckley said having her in his life made the process much
easier.

"I have a lot of faith in the Lord and so does my wife," he said. "And we
feed off each other a great deal. It was a crazy first month of marriage
going back and forth like that. But I've been given a gift."

Hinckley began tossing a ball in November and started throwing in earnest in
January. He's eager to put last season behind him, though it is yet to be
determined where he will begin 2006. If he's healthy, Double-A Harrisburg,
where he was 5-2 with a 2.87 ERA in 16 starts in 2004, is a likely starting
point.

"Anyone can have ups and downs through any season, but last year was my only
down year," Hinckley said. "That's going to happen. I've had more dream
seasons than ones when I've been on that roller-coaster. [The Nationals] had
a lot of expectations of me last year, but I had a lot of expectations, too.
Things just didn't fall into place.

"But my arm feels much better now. There are times when I still want to baby
it, but people have said that the doctor wouldn't have sealed it up if he
hadn't taken care of everything."