Chase Whitley diagnosed with partially torn UCL, could face Tommy John
The seemingly endless parade of UCL injuries continues.
On Friday, the New York Yankees received the initial diagnosis on fill-in starter Chase Whitley, who was forced from Thursday’s start against the Tampa Bay Rays will elbow discomfort.
According to MLB.com’s Bryan Hock, the news was not good as an MRI revealed that Whitley’s UCL has a partial tear.
Whitley will seek a second opinion to confirm the diagnosis. From there, it will likely be decision time between elbow ligament replacement surgery, which is more famously known as Tommy John surgery, or rehab.
Given that the early diagnosis is a partial tear, both options should be on the table. Last season, Masahiro Tanaka of the Yankees was diagnosed with a slight tear in his UCL, which he rehabbed and was able to return from before season’s end. He was pitching effectively early this season before suffering a right forearm strain, which ironically opened the rotation spot for Whitley.
Sometimes rehab works with partial, though it really only delays the inevitable. The Yankees should have a better idea of the severity of the tear when he vists the doctors in New York.
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Whitley, 25, has been a valuable swingman for Joe Girardi joining the team last season. His 5.02 ERA over 95 career innings is nothing to write home about, but his ability to log innings in multiple roles make him an important piece. His upside is probably what he already is — a back-end start or long reliever — but every team needs one or two of those types to survive a 162-game schedule.
If there’s good news, it’s that veteran left-hander Chris Capuano is due back very soon from a quadriceps injury. He’s a guy who can fill the same role, though with two Tommy Johns under his belt there’s no way to project what he’ll have left.
The Yankees also hope to have Tanaka back in short order, which obviously solidify their rotation. Michael Pineda, CC Sabathia, Adam Warren and Nathan Eovaldi make up the Yankees current healthy starters. With two off days next week, they won’t need a fifth starter the last week of May.
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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Townie813
