TODAY: Whitlock is tentatively set to endure an inner brace process, he instructed The Athletic’s Jen McCaffrey and different reporters. The small print can be confirmed after extra testing this coming week. Assuming the surgical procedure takes place as deliberate, Whitlock will miss roughly 11-12 months in restoration, versus the longer 13-15 month timeline related to Tommy John surgical procedures.
MAY 20: Garrett Whitlock has suffered ligament injury in his throwing elbow, Purple Sox supervisor Alex Cora introduced to reporters (together with Chris Cotillo of MassLive). The Boston right-hander will go for additional analysis tomorrow to find out whether or not he can keep away from surgical procedure.
This was the end result which the crew and its followers feared final week. Whitlock reported elbow soreness popping out of a rehab begin for Triple-A Worcester on Wednesday. He’d been working again from an indirect pressure that had shelved him for the reason that center of April and had been hoping to return to the MLB crew within the coming days.
As a substitute, there seems to be probability that his 2024 season is over. If Whitlock does want surgical procedure, it might threaten his ’25 marketing campaign as properly. Whitlock has already undergone a Tommy John process in his profession. That got here again in 2019 when he was pitching within the Yankees farm system. Whitlock additionally had two elbow-related injured listing stints in 2023, the latter of which value him 5 weeks between July and August. Neither of these concerned any ligament injury, however this damage sadly seems to be extra critical.
The 27-year-old hasn’t had a full season as a beginning pitcher since his time within the minors. He was a superb multi-inning aid weapon for his first two MLB campaigns. Boston gave him 10 begins final 12 months earlier than his July injured listing placement. Whitlock labored out of the bullpen after returning. The Sox moved him again into the beginning workers to open this 12 months. He allowed solely 4 runs in 18 1/3 innings previous to the indirect damage.
Cooper Criswell has stepped into the rotation behind Brayan Bello, Nick Pivetta, Kutter Crawford and Tanner Houck. Signed to a $1MM contract final winter after being non-tendered by the Rays, Criswell has been quietly wonderful by means of his first 29 1/3 frames for the Sox. He owns a 2.76 ERA with a stable 23.3% strikeout proportion and a tidy 5.8% stroll charge.
Criswell, who will take the ball tomorrow towards his outdated crew in Tampa Bay, ought to maintain a rotation spot for the foreseeable future. Beginning pitching may very well be an space that first-year chief baseball officer Craig Breslow and his workers look to deal with across the deadline, assuming they hold in postseason competition. Boston blanked the Rays this night to tug again to .500 at 24-24. They’re lengthy pictures to stay with the Yankees and Orioles on the high of the AL East however are firmly within the Wild Card image.
Whereas Boston’s rotation has been a shocking power to date, their entrance 5 is gentle on expertise. Pivetta is the one member of the group who has ever began 30 MLB video games in a season. He and Bello are the one ones who’ve surpassed the 130-inning threshold on the large league degree.
That lack of quantity is an enormous purpose that Boston signed Lucas Giolito, who had been one of many league’s most sturdy pitchers, to a two-year free agent deal. Giolito instantly down with {a partially} torn UCL in Spring Coaching. He underwent an inner brace process and can miss all the season.
Even when Whitlock is ready to keep away from going below the knife, he’s actually in for a long-term absence. The Sox will transfer him to the 60-day injured listing after they want a 40-man roster spot. Whitlock, who signed an extension again in 2022, is taking part in this season on a $3.25MM wage. He’ll make successive salaries of $5.25MM and $7.25MM over the following two seasons. Boston holds a $10.5MM possibility on his companies for the 2027 marketing campaign.
