Indians right-hander Cody Anderson will undergo Tommy John surgery and miss the 2017 season, the team announced (Twitter link via Jordan Bastian of MLB.com). Anderson made the decision after a second opinion confirmed both a sprain of the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow and a mild flexor strain.
The unfortunate news for Anderson comes as an unexpected development, as manager Terry Francona indicated earlier this month that the 26-year-old would likely avoid surgery. Instead, Anderson will undergo the second procedure on his elbow since November, when he had arthroscopic surgery.
Anderson would not have cracked an Indians rotation that’s set to feature Corey Kluber, Carlos Carrasco, Danny Salazar, Trevor Bauer and Josh Tomlin. However, he likely would have factored into the equation this year as either starting depth and/or in a long relief role. He made 19 appearances, nine of which were starts, for the American League champions last year and pitched to an unsightly 6.68 ERA in 60 2/3 innings, though he encouraged with his K/9 (8.01), BB/9 (1.93) and swinging-strike rate (12.2 percent). Anderson also saw his average fastball velocity jump from 92.1 mph in 2015 to 93.5 mph last year. That came after a 2015 debut in which Anderson pitched to a sparkling 3.05 ERA in 91 1/3 innings and 15 appearances (all starts), albeit with worse numbers in the other categories (4.34 K/9, 2.36 BB/9 and 7.8 percent swinging-strike rate).
Anderson, who’s in his penultimate season of pre-arbitration eligibility, will lose a year of service time as he spends 2017 recovering on the disabled list. Meanwhile, more opportunities could come this season for any of Hoby Millner, Mike Clevinger or 2016 postseason hero Ryan Merritt, among others (depth chart).
In another less-than-ideal development for the Indians, second baseman Jason Kipnis is roughly four to five weeks from returning to major league action. Kipnis went for a second opinion on his bothersome right shoulder, and Dr. Keith Meister concurred with Indians doctors that he’s dealing with inflammation. If the Kipnis-less Indians don’t venture outside the organization for help at the keystone, they could turn to in-house options Erik Gonzalez, Michael Martinez or Ronny Rodriguez. Alternatively, Francona said this week that third baseman Jose Ramirez could head to second, which would leave the hot corner to Gonzalez, Giovanny Urshela or Richie Shaffer (Twitter link via Bastian).
On a positive note, Michael Brantley will make his spring debut on Monday and play left field. An integral cog from 2014-15, when he slashed an outstanding .319/.382/.494 with 35 home runs and 38 steals across 1,272 plate appearances, Brantley totaled just 11 PAs last year on account of shoulder troubles. The 29-year-old underwent shoulder surgery in November 2015 and again last August.
Completely unrelated but could mlbtr add a link in the tools section or elsewhere to a post about the changes recently made to the cba in regards to qualifying offers and draft pick compensation? Like I do internet searches and searches on this site for a summary and I simply can’t find one.
This should help: mlbtraderumors.com/2016/12/mlb-mlbpa-agree-to-new-…
Perfect, thanks.
Another one bites the dust.
Well that’s a shame for Cody, but hopefully this Tommy John Surgery will help him in the long run.
I’m actually really interested in finding out how Giovanny Urshela has progressed since 2015. He’s a superb defender, so with an infield of him, Lindor and Ramirez, there aren’t going to be many ground balls getting through to the outfield
Gio is a great defender, but still a work in progress with the bat. Schaffer has had a good spring, hitting and fielding.
Hmmm, no Yandy Diaz in the mix for 3B? His bat is light years ahead of Urshela’s, and his D is pretty good, too.
If Brantley can’t stay healthy this year he will be pressing into Grady Sizemore territory. An elite talent that shined for a few years before injuries did them in.
Brantley needed another good season or two to be considered near Sizemore’s level prior to the injuries taking him down.
I wouldn’t mind seeing them resign Mike Aviles as he brings great flexibility and leadership to the clubhouse.
There’s a reason they let him go. They have guys who are younger who can hit better and provide better defense……and don’t cost as much. Same happened with Juiceon Giambi.
As for leadership? It’s Lindor’s clubhouse now!
And who is Linder bonding with now at the WBC?
is it just me or do any other tribe fans think that Shaffer reminds them of Russ Canzler? former rays top prospect, 1b/of/3b type, good minors numbers, good spring stats, but boring mlb numbers,
i am curious as to how Wily Mo Pena is doing. seems he is slugging away….
He’s destined for AAA, or a foreign league.