Devastating, but not necessarily surprising news, out of Los Angeles as Tony Gonsolin will undergo Tommy John surgery after being placed on the injured list Aug. 19 with then-diagnosed right forearm inflammation.
Manager Dave Roberts said that Gonsolin was powering through the pain, and that he had been considering Tommy John surgery since midway through the season.
"There is nothing that an MRI showed after his last start that was worse, which caused the Tommy John," Roberts said. "This is something that he had on his mind. We thought [Tommy John surgery] was a potential [outcome] from the middle of the season."
Gonsolin, who was 8-5 with a 4.98 in 20 starts this season, had been struggling in his last several starts. On Aug. 18, he allowed five home runs and 10 earned runs, perhaps a signal to Roberts that it was time.
“He felt like he could keep pitching, and, to be quite honest, he could still pitch right now,” Roberts said. “But it just wasn’t productive. With all pitchers, I’m assuming that there’s always some damage or tears. Some guys can pitch through it, which Tony did.
(Via MLB.com)
Because it typically takes nine months at the very earliest to recover from Tommy John surgery, the road to recovery for Gonsolin could be a long one.
Gonsolin was at the top of his game last season, earning his first All-Star bid after going 11-0 with a 2.02 ERA in the first half of the season. Gonsolin's contract incentivized longevity, with the 29-year-old set to earn $500,000 for making 14, 16, 18 and 20 starts.
“I think that was motivation to pitch,” Roberts said. “I can sympathize and understand that, from a player’s perspective. And I still believe that if we would have stopped this process months ago, he would be in the same position to have Tommy John surgery. It was one of those things where we had a real honest conversation with Tony.”
(Via MLB.com)
More must-reads: