Hendrick Motorsports star driver Chase Elliott’s recent commitment has left his supporters worried. Ahead of the Quaker State 400 playoff race in Atlanta, Elliott will be throwing out the first pitch for the Atlanta Braves on Friday night.

The HMS star who hails from Dawsonville is a big Braves fan. Therefore, he gladly took on the honor of opening the three-game series against the Blue Jays. This might sound like nothing egregious, but pulling off such an act before the crucial playoff race could prove detrimental to Elliott.

He also underwent shoulder surgery after the conclusion of last year’s racing action. It was a niggling injury that Chase Elliott needed to get fixed up, and surgery was the only way he could recover 100%. It’s fair to say that 2023 wasn’t the best of the year for NASCAR’s most popular driver. Fortunately, he had a quick and successful recovery road before the start of the 2024 races.

Having recovered from a torn labrum, his decision to throw the first pitch for the MBL series is concerning, not just for him but even for his fans. However, Elliott is very much looking forward to this experience, despite the risks involved. He said, “I’ll be honest with you, I have not thrown anything like a baseball since I had my shoulder worked on over the winter. But I’m looking forward to it. It’ll be fun. I’ve never done that, but I appreciate them having me. I think it will be a cool experience for me that I’ll always remember.” The HMS driver was quoted saying this via the Atlantic Journal-Constitution.

But his ardent supporters and HMS fans on Reddit aren’t sold on his adventures. Knowing that a single misstep could derail his chances to compete for the championship at the end of this year.

Major stress over Chase Elliott’s antics before the NASCAR playoffs

Hendrick Motorsports drivers have a bad run in terms of catching an injury curse. Not just Elliott, but his teammate Alex Bowman also missed multiple races last year. He injured his back while competing in a sprint car event. Therefore, fans don’t want their favorite driver to catch a freak injury after a solid 2024 run so far. “Chase don’t do this; we don’t need you catching the injury curse that everything associated with the Braves has this year.”

It doesn’t even take much to have a shoulder injury. This was evident from Lane Riggs’ first Truck Series win at Milwaukee Mile; the 22-year-old dislocated his shoulder while celebrating throwing punches in the air. This example was used by this fan in trying to persuade Elliott to stray away from his pitching duties. “Well…. Lane Riggs threw out his shoulder just celebrating his win on top of his truck at Milwaukee.”

The ceremonial first-pitch ritual has been around for a long time in MLB. However, knowing that Elliott might cause himself an injury on his fragile shoulder, this Redditor tabled some tweaks for these honorary pitches. “We should have people throw out “last pitches” instead of first. Two outs in the 9th? Time for NASCAR superstar Chase Elliott to deliver the last pitch.”

Although Elliott hasn’t faced the grim situation of sitting out the rest of the season due to a shoulder injury, some of them even started plotting HMS’s next move. “Elliott better watch his knee. A player for the Washington Spirit tore her miscusius throwing out the first pitch at a Washington Nationals game”

One fan made an interesting comparison, pointing out the case of Olympic gold medalist and Washington Spirit midfielder Croix Bethune. The athlete is currently sidelined for the rest of the NWSL season after a freak accident—tearing her meniscus while throwing out the first pitch at a Nationals game last Wednesday. The reminder serves as a cautionary tale for Chase Elliott, highlighting how even light-hearted moments can carry risks.

Another fan adding to this argument’s theme prepared a scheduled message that would pop up online after Elliott’s pitch. “As someone with recurring shoulder issues, I am now awaiting the news that Chase Elliott has re-injured his shoulder throwing out the first pitch…. Lol.”

Chase Elliott’s injury hasn’t been recent. Instead, he himself admitted to the prolonged issues. Talking to Dale Jr. earlier this year, on his surgery, Chase Elliott had said, “My shoulder has always bothered me for probably 8 or 10 years.” But as time passed, there have been significant developments on and off the field.

Hopefully, the HMS star can walk out injury-free after his ceremonial pitch at Truist Park.