With the Chicago White Sox preparing for Opening Day with the start of the 2026 season around the corner, the team gets a huge blow to its pitching staff. As the White Sox finish off spring training, hopefully with a bang, there is no doubt that the latest news puts a damper on the start of the season.
According to MLB.com reporter Mark Feinsand, Chicago relief pitcher Mike Vasil will miss the upcoming season, as he will get Tommy John surgery “in the coming weeks.”
“White Sox RHP Mike Vasil will undergo Tommy John surgery in the coming weeks, the club announced,” Feinsand wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
Vasil would leave the 7-2 loss on Saturday to the Los Angeles Dodgers, where it was said he had “right elbow soreness,” leading to the pitcher saying after the game that “something just didn't feel right.”
“At this moment, we’re going to look over scans, more tests, try to figure out some more stuff, and look at the imaging and go from there,” Vasil said, via MLB.com. “Anytime with an elbow, you just want to be precautionary, especially this time of year. If something’s not feeling right, you gotta speak up, gotta say something. Had them come out there, and we just decided it was best not to push.”
The news is a huge blow for the White Sox's bullpen
There's no denying how much of a blow this news is to the White Sox's bullpen, as Vasil last season in his first season in the majors, recorded a 2.50 ERA to go along with 82 strikeouts in 101 innings pitched. Manager Will Venable
“So, kind of day by day, we are collecting more information and getting closer to some of these decisions,” Venable said before the Tommy John surgery announcement.
Vasil will work on getting back healthy for Chicago in the future with the 2026 Opening Day on Thursday, March 26, against the Milwaukee Brewers. The team is no doubt looking to improve after finishing with a 60-102 record, which put them last in the AL Central and had the second-worst record in the MLB behind the Colorado Rockies.
