Braves righty Daniel Winkler, who underwent Tommy John surgery in 2014 and missed most of last season, left the club’s game Sunday in agony with a fractured elbow, Mark Saxon of ESPN.com was among those to report (on Twitter). Winkler, whom Atlanta took from Colorado during the offseason’s Rule 5 draft, was off to a hot start as a member of the Braves’ bullpen. Prior to the injury, he had gone 2 1/3 innings without allowing a hit or a run, adding four strikeouts against one walk. It’s currently unknown how much time Winkler will miss, but given the significance of the injury, the rest of the season seems like a strong possibility for the 26-year-old.
Here’s more injury news from around the National League:
- Cardinals lefty Marco Gonzales is deciding whether to undergo elbow surgery after consulting with doctors, including renowned orthopedic surgeon Neal ElAttrache, tweets Saxon. It’s unknown what type of surgery Gonzales is considering, writes Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com. If the 24-year-old undergoes Tommy John surgery, he’d face a 12- to 18-month recovery, Langosch notes. Prior to notifying the Cardinals’ medical staff of elbow discomfort during the final week of Spring Training, Gonzales was expected to serve as rotation depth for the club this season. Gonzales, who dealt with shoulder issues last season, has logged a 4.82 ERA with 7.7 K/9 against 5.3 BB/9 in 37 1/3 MLB innings.
- Padres third baseman Yangervis Solarte is headed to the 15-day disabled list with a right hamstring injury, paving the way for the call-up of utility man Alexi Amarista, according to Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune. Solarte slashed an eye-popping .375/.474/.563 over his first 19 plate appearances this year. Amarista fared well in a minuscule sample size for Triple-A El Paso to start the year, but he recorded a weak .204/.257/.287 in 357 PAs for the Padres last season and hasn’t exactly been stellar in his 1,575 big league PAs (.227/.274/.325). He does, however, offer versatility, having spent time at six different positions in the infield and outfield during his career.
- Another past Tommy John recipient, Mets reliever Josh Edgin, began a rehab assignment Sunday with 2/3 of an inning at Class-A St. Lucie and is on track for an early May return, reports Anthony DiComo of MLB.com (Twitter link). The southpaw last saw action in 2014, when he served as a shutdown option for the Mets in compiling a 9.22 K/9 and 1.98 BB/9 to accompany a stingy 1.32 ERA in 27 1/3 innings.
That Winkler injury was hard to watch. Gotta feel for that kid having just come back from TJ and now probably having to go under the knife again. Hope he can recover and get back out there
It was bad. I watched his arm go purple. I clutched my elbow for a split second. I hope he’s able to come back from this. I really do.
Man I feel horrible for Winkler. I always liked him as a Rockies prospect and I was super PO’d when they left him exposed to the Rule 5 Draft. Hopefully he can come back from this and be a productive big leaguer because he definitely has the talent for it.
Winkler was pitching very well and showed as much promise (or more) than any other young member of the braves bullpen. Hopefully he recovers fully.
Agreed to all above, was watching the game deep here in Cardinal country and that was awful. Hope the kid recovers and pitches well, for Braves or Rockies.
The amazing amount of pitcher arm injuries is staggering. Makes me wonder how we did it years ago…
Smoltz hit the nail on the head the other day when he said that when he was pitching he never threw to maximum velocity.. That is probably why as a power pitcher he didn’t fall victim to TJ until his mid 30’s. Kids these days are under constant pressure to light up the radar gun. The human arm isn’t meant to do what these guys are doing and the results are exactly what we can expect. I was at my boy’s high school game last year. He was only JV at the time. Yet, both teams had radar guns being used. Once more and more of these prep players start falling to severe injuries we might start seeing a different philosophy being implemented. Hopefully, in the mean time we don’t lose the next Maddux, Clemens, Koufax, or Gibson because their arm fell off in high school. Sorry about the rant and straying a bit off topic.
Not a rant, but the truth. I have coached this game for almost 30 years and have always told my kids, movement and ball placement.
I know I threw in hs, college and A and AA until it just fell off…