TODAY: May will undergo Tommy John surgery tomorrow, the righty announced himself via his Twitter feed (hat tip to SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo).
MARCH 11: Twins right-hander Trevor May has been diagnosed with a torn ulnar collateral ligament, per Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. He’s slated to receive a second opinion next week, Berardino adds, but certainly Tommy John surgery is now a strong possibility for the 27-year-old.
It’s dejecting news for the Twins and for May, who was in competition to reclaim a spot in the Twins’ rotation after spending the past season and a half in the bullpen. Originally acquired in the trade that sent Ben Revere to the Phillies, May had a solid first half of the 2015 season in the Twins’ rotation before moving to a setup role when Glen Perkins went down with an injury. May thrived in that bullpen role in 2015 but struggled in the same role last season, missing significant time due to back injuries.
May totaled just 44 2/3 innings out of the Twins’ bullpen last season due to the aforementioned back issues, pitching to a 5.00 ERA but posting an impressive 60-to-17 K/BB ratio while averaging 93.9 mph on his fastball. A year prior, May logged a 4.43 ERA in 83 1/3 innings as a starter but delivered a much more encouraging 3.35 FIP and 3.96 xFIP. Upon shifting to the ’pen in July, May turned in a 2.87 ERA with 10.6 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9 in 31 1/3 innings to finish out the season.
Earlier this spring, May suggested to Phil Miller of the Minneapolis Star Tribune that the move to a relief role might’ve adversely impacted his health. Now, in the wake of this latest, devastating injury, that question will be up for even further debate. The injury, it seems, occurred during May’s most recent start, when he tossed 3 2/3 innings against Team USA’s World Baseball Classic lineup. As May explains (video link via Berardino), he felt a “grab” in his elbow on a single pitch. “I downplayed it in my head,” said May. “I thought it was some tightness in my flexors, something I’ve felt before.” May went on to throw another 34 pitches after the initial “grab” and felt continued soreness the following day, which prompted an MRI.
It’s of course possible, albeit unlikely, that May can avoid Tommy John surgery. We’ve seen pitchers such as Masahiro Tanaka and Garrett Richards opt for platelet-rich plasma injections and stem cell injections in recent years and avoid the operation. And, depending on the extent of the tear, May could be a candidate for the “primary repair” surgery that Seth Maness underwent last August. However, any of those treatments could very well sideline May for the entire season anyhow, perhaps making the more traditional Tommy John route the most logical course of action.
The loss of May means that the competition for the fifth spot in the Twins’ rotation will now come down to Jose Berrios, Tyler Duffey, Adalberto Mejia and, perhaps, non-roster invitees Ryan Vogelsong and Nick Tepesch.
Minnesota still controls May through the 2020 campaign, so he could play an important role in future Twins clubs should he make a full recovery. May will presumably spend the entire 2017 season on the 60-day disabled list and accrue a full year of service time, making him eligible for arbitration next winter.
Wasn’t he pitching in WBC? Or am I mistaken?
He pitched against Team USA earlier this week.
He was pitching for Team USA.
Sorry, I meant against.
I believe he was pitching for the Twins. I remember a dugout interview with Molitor, where he talked about May.
Read this as “Trevor Story” for whatever reason
thats to bad i was excited to see him back as a starter the twins someone who can get strike outs in the rotation. and would have have time for guys like berrios duffey and majia to work on a few more things at AAA
That’s a shame. Maybe he can find a way around Tommy John surgery because he could have had a breakout year. Over 12 K’s per 9 last year and his hits per 9 keeps dropping every year? Sign me up!
Looks like he’s gonna be playing a lot of overwatch!
Is there a reason that relieving would hurt his back but starting would not? Maxing out on every pitch instead of pacing yourself?
he was a starter from 2008-2014 then half way threw the 2015 season pushed to the pen so from going from pitching every 5 days to pitching back to back days is a big change and not everyone can make the switch
I think yes and also the constant grind of warming up to game speed every night practically, molitor ran him into the ground when they were in the playoff hunt
yea that true but when you give a manager who is over his head a bull pen with only a couple ok arms thats what happens
I don’t want to blame him, but once you feel anything let alone a “grab” in your elbow, you call your trainer out and you take yourself out of that game.
I think the ship had sailed at the “grab”, so I doubt it made any difference other than causing him pain at the time.
I thought he tore his UCL or ACL I get them confused
sorry I miss read the article name that was my bad
As a lifelong Twins fan… I don’t really care about this. If the young kids don’t play well, this season is a disaster anyway.
Stupid question: if he gets TJ surgery now, and is put on the DL, does he get ML service for the whole time until he’s back off the DL and assigned elsewhere? Or does the clock stop (i.e. you have to be on the field to get a “service day”). Is the answer different if this happened in May, rather than ST?
Nope. If you’re on the DL you accrue service time.
And technically they will wait until the start of the season to put him on the DL. Since he’s on the 40 man roster and it’s going to be TJ, they will likely put him on the 60 day DL to free up another spot on the 40 man roster. That will allow them to sign a free agent or move someone that’s not on the 40 man up to it.