Last year's American League Cy Young Award winner–Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Blake Snell–will undergo arthroscopic surgery to remove a loose body in his left elbow, according to Josh Tolentino of The Athletic:
#Rays Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell will undergo arthroscopic surgery to remove a loose body in his left elbow, sources tell @TheAthleticMLB
STORY: https://t.co/cFrSRpWwit
— Josh Tolentino (@JCTSports) July 25, 2019
The timeline for recovery varies significantly depending on the individual. The prevailing notion is that he will need six weeks of recovery and rehab, but former Rays pitcher Nathan Eovaldi took about three months to get fully healthy after he had the same procedure done last year.
Snell, 26, is in the first year of a five-year, $50 million extension that he signed with the team prior to the start of the regular season after he led the AL in wins (21, which also led the MLB) and ERA (1.89).
After getting off to a good start in April, Snell suffered an injury setback that caused some discomfort throughout the month of May. Still, he managed to be effective, posting a 3.51 ERA in six starts. June, however, was a totally different story.
Snell posted a 9.64 ERA and pitched just 23 1/3 innings over the course of six starts in the month. Opposing hitters slashed .330/.398/.510 against him, and his strikeout-to-walk ratio was a mere 2.83, far below his usual numbers.
However, the dynamic left-hander had turned things around as of late, posting a 1.13 ERA in three July starts while holding opponents to a mere .631 OPS. He dominated the Chicago White Sox in his last outing on July 21, striking out ten and scattering three hits across six innings of work.
Losing Snell for a good portion of the home stretch is a crusher for the Rays, who are chasing a playoff spot in a very top-heavy American League.
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