7:30pm: The Padres have now announced that Espinoza will undergo Tommy John surgery.
7:20pm: Padres prospect Anderson Espinoza has been diagnosed with a torn ulnar collateral ligament and will undergo Tommy John surgery next week, reports Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune (via Twitter). The right-hander was acquired in a straight-up swap for left-hander Drew Pomeranz last summer — a trade that spawned its share of controversy after the Red Sox were reportedly unhappy with the state of Pomeranz’s health and a lack of medical information disclosure from the Padres.
The 19-year-old Espinoza was one of the top pitching prospects in all of baseball at the time of the swap and entered the 2017 season ranked as a consensus top 25 prospect in baseball. Though he posted just a 4.49 ERA in a combined 108 1/3 innings of Class-A ball in 2016, Espinoza was also one of the youngest players in that league and managed an impressive 100-to-35 K/BB ratio in that time.
However, Espinoza hasn’t pitched at all in 2017 after experiencing forearm tightness back in early April (as Lin reported earlier this month). He progressed to a throwing program recently, according to Lin, but didn’t feel right after his most recent bullpen session, thus prompting further examination.
It’s a tough blow for the Padres’ farm system, as Espinoza now won’t throw a competitive inning at all in 2017 and figures to miss the majority of the 2018 campaign. Certainly, he’s young enough that there’s plenty of time for him to reach his potential as a front-line starter, but beyond the disappointment of pushing back his timeline to the Majors, the injury will also cost Espinoza two or more years of development time .
Oh, the irony
+1
Yup! Sometimes irony can be pretty ironic.
Nooooooooooooooooo
Yeeesssssss!
Boy did the Sox get swindled.
To think that both he and Paddack (also acquired at the ’16 deadline) fell victim to TJ surgery is exceptionally ironic
3 if you count Colin Rea.
Erlin Johnson rea paddock him
Diaz went down with issues as well
I don’t know if ironic is the word. He was fine at the time of the trade. Diagnosed with the sore elbow this spring. Bummer, but he’ll only be 21 in the spring of 2019 when he’ll presumably be ready to return to the low minors. Ah well; I wonder how much worse the ligament has gotten between now and this spring, when he was first diagnosed, considering I don’t think he’s thrown at all, not even sim games.
I was thinking he had an issue with his arm as a 17yo when he 1st signed for the.. 1.7-1.8m bonus.. Not UCL issue, but some hairline fracture I believe in his right arm, or something else bone related with his arm that Boston found and they still gave him all that money.
It’s still a super talented kid.. He’ll be back by the time is 20, so shouldn’t worry to much. I’ve seen him pitch in the GCL and the kid’s got the heat and curve down pat.. Was only 18 then, a fierce competitor was pacing the dugout between innings even, not sitting down like most do.. This kid can’t wait to get back out on the mound.
It’ll work out in the Padres favor long term.
Yeah it’s unfortunate that this happened, but he’s still got plenty of time to come back and work his way up to his potential. It’s interesting how quite a few young Padres pitchers have been going down with TJ over the past year.
Lol
Shocking news flash..Tulo Is Hurt..
The Padres play in the NL West. What do the Reds and the NL Central have to do with Espinoza?
This comment was in reply to “hzt502”
That comment was in reply to another commenter who has since had his comment deleted. I got rid of the Reds one, too, but just because it’s off topic. Sometimes it takes a minute or two for comments to disappear from the mobile app when they’re deleted, though. (They do vanish from the web version of MLBTR instantly.)
Oh ok…I was confused lol
Thank you. Yankeeaddiction has been sabotaging mlbtr for sometime now and it’s annoying
Yes, YankeeAddiction is one of the most frustrating commenters I’ve ever seen on any forum
Mets’ firing of their strength and conditioning coach and medical team cannot come soon enough!!!
What????
What does the Mets medical staff have to do with a Padres/Red Sox trade? lol another comment needs to get deleted
Just a sarcastic reference to certain fans’ immediate knee-jerk reactions and calls for medical staff firings every time a player gets injured (especially certain Mets fans).
Duh
So that’s two pieces from last year that got tommy John
You don’t see sd crying
Because as always, we’re classy
Because they weren’t hurt when San Diego acquired them. Pomeranz and Rea were hurt when traded. Surely you can understand the difference, right? Espinoza was Padres property for over a year before he was diagnosed with the torn UCL.
How’s Pomeranz doing in his recovery from Tommy John?
Whether Pomeranz is currently hurt or not is irrelevant. The cheating during the process was the important part, not the individual outcomes for the players involved.
It is indeed relevant. The Red Sox are like your annoying friend who spends the whole Monopoly game whining that you are cheating and then they end up winning anyway. They should change their name to the “Boston Crybabies.” And their logo could be an infant throwing a tantrum and pising itself.
Yes, the Red Sox just shouldn’t have cared that the Padres purposefully hid medical information about players they were trading.
And what was the medical info on Pomeranz that the Padres we’re supposedly hiding? That he was taking oral antiinflammatories. And not even prescription antiinflammatories. The kind you could go buy at your local 7-Eleven right now if you wanted to.
Cmon West coast Ryan you do realize that the trade could of been reversed, and probably would have if the trading deadline hadn’t passed. The league is not in the habit in coming in after the trade and allowing it to be reversed unless there is pretty damning evidence that you did something wrong or in this case his something. The trade is working out for Boston at this point but it still doesn’t change the fact that Preller hid info and just got a slap on the wrist.
Lol do you really think the Red Sox would have not made that trade if they knew that Pomeranz was taking over-the-counter antiinflammatories? Just admit that it was all much ado about nothing.
Reap what you sew I guess…
Sow.
As a Red Sox fan, I take this as validation that sticks it to the trolls. As a very young pitching prospect, Espinoza’s range of potential careers was wiiiiiide, and using him to get a still young SP who still had upside AND would come with multiple years of control was just fine. Maybe you liked the trade, maybe you didn’t, but the number of people who trashed it was ridiculous. Welp, now they’re wrong.
Meanwhile, as a baseball fan, I find this depressing. Espinoza has terrific talent, and I want it to amount to something great. I hope this is nothing more than a delay before a long and impressive career.
Alot of times they come back stronger. Like Rowengartner
Gardenhoser had a broken arm and his tendons fused together right
Dang, just add to the list.
Paddack, Erlin, Rea, E.Johnson, Capps (almost back), and now Espinoza. Crazy.
Anybody know what’s going on with Jon Edwards? He hasn’t pitched in like 2 years, remember Preller acquiring him from Texas for Wil Venable and haven’t seen him pitch since the end of that year, he was supposed to be a late inning option for us the last couple years if healthy.
He was cut end of March.
Okay cool, thanks for the update.
Johnson is still here
They cut him to get him on the 40 man and then resigned him
Never mind misread the name
Diaz went down no word on return yet
Coppy is on the phone now to see if he can trade for him!
Dansby swanson anderson espionza trade coming.
Swanson just needs a real baseball town like sd
Famous quotes from Matt kemp “I’ve never played in a real baseball town until I got to Atlanta”
I hope his surgery goes well
Don’t need another Josh Johnson
That’s funny. Shows what a head case Kemp is. I went to Atlanta for 5 playoff series and was able to walk up and buy a ticket at the ballpark’s box office. No other city has that lackadaisical of fans.
I really saw him as a great prospect so I hope he has a speedy recovery
What goes around comes around
Seems like everyone needs it nowadays. Better to get it out of the way now rather than when the Pads will be good again
Still wanna reverse that trade?
Who ever wanted to reverse the trade?
The Red Sox and many of their fans.
The Red Sox had the chance. And they declined. Sooo…??
Exactly, they made a big fuss and ended up turning it down anyways. It was all much ado about nothing.
They turned it down because the deadline had already passed and there wouldn’t have been any other passable help available
Mmhm. And how’s that working out for the Sox?
A lot of people
Anderson Espinoza is a talented young man and I am sure he will get through this surgery and work hard in his rehabilitation to become the pitcher he and his family dream dream of. The best of luck to Anderson.
The worst part about this is that he wasn’t diagnosed earlier. Why it took nearly 2/3 of a season to come to this conclusion is a little disturbing.
Maybe they figured it wasn’t as serious when was first having discomfort at the beginning of the season. It seems like the surgery is only needed when all other options have been exhausted. But you’re right, you’d think they would have come to this conclusion a little earlier.
Once a guy goes down with “forearm soreness/tightness” it’s next to inevitable. That’s why the Marlins had no right to complain about Rea. He was shut down in September of the prior year with forearm tightness. It was no surprise when he needed TJS.
They complained because medical records were withheld. MLB investigated this and found that, yes, the Padres indeed were keeping separate and internal medical records. This is all documented. They cheated. The outcomes for any of the players involved are irrelevant.
My question is how was that even able to happen? I feel like if there was any issue that was so serious that it warranted nixing the trade, the Marlins would have known about it. Like, I’m a nobody with a computer and I knew Rea was at risk for Tommy John (shut down with forearm soreness the prior season) so how didn’t the Marlins know about this?
That is not at all what happened. MLB found that San Diego was systemically not reporting treatment that was not done by team doctors. While the Padres kept track of these “non-medical” type treatments, they did not report them to MLB.
Some examples given were that if the trainer suggested that a player take an over the counter anti-inflamatory like ibuprofen or naproxen, then the team did not report it to MLB. If the Dr. gave a player a cortisone shot it was reported. If a player felt tight and was given more treatment by the team massage therapist, then the Padres were not reporting it to MLB, if they were sent by the team Dr. to the physical therapist it was reported.
The problem in MLB’s eyes was that this lack of reporting of non-medical treatment was systemic in nature. The team knew that it was a gray area and chose to skirt that line. Not a good precedent to set. From the report, it was a policy the team put in place prior to the 2014 season.
In Pomeranz’s case, he was taking anti-inflammatories like Ibuprofen, and the team had not reported it. As far as I know he has not missed a single game because of injury. He did have to have a rich platelet plasma injection, a medical treatment, once he reached the Red Sox, but spent no DL time.
In Rea’s case, the Padres revealed the previous injury. That he had missed time with an injury had been on this website prior to the trade and I am sure in lots of places I don’t read. He didn’t tear his UCL until he was pitching for the Marlins. The Padres offered to take Rea back, the Marlins didn’t ask for it. They did so for several reasons. They were already under investigation for what had happened with the Red Sox and I am sure they hoped it would mitigate any penalties. They felt that Naylor and Capps were the centerpieces of the deal. They valued Rea even with the injury more than they did Castillo.
What the Padres did was wrong and their GM was suspended and the President of the team was fired.
Yes. The Marlins knew about Rea’s previous injury. He was shut down in September 2015 with forearm soreness. That is known to be the precursor to Tommy John surgery and there was plenty of discussion on Padres fan boards two offseasons ago that he would eventually need Tommy John surgery, concerns that proved valid. The people on there are nobodies with even less access to information than the Marlins front office. So if they all saw it coming, how didn’t the Marlins FO see it coming?
Despite this, I as well as many Padres fans preferred the revised trade that didn’t include Rea or Castillo. It felt weird trading Colin Rea, a young, homegrown starter who we controlled through 2021, in the middle of a rebuild.
And on another bright note. The Padres will have to put him on the 40 after next season. So he’ll already be on his option years when he comes back.
Hey AJ, its call Karma.
Karma for what? Pomeranz not missing a start for the red sox or rea pitching 3.1 innings and 44 pitches before getting hurt? Clearly withholding them taking anti inflammatory medication is the reason neither rea or pomeranz have been able to pitch to the team they were traded to……oh wait.
This is great. Some guy on here last week was still trying to say he was a top 20 prospect and Dombrowski had made a bad trade.
How is it great that he will need to have potentially career-threatening surgery
Start with a highly touted pitcher who is drafted early and figure out his chances for being great in the show. Then, add to the chances that he makes it with the 50% probability he’ll need TJ surgery before he succeeds. The investment in young pitchers with 100mph fastballs is far, far riskier than a hitter.
Theo figured that out a long time ago and took his knowledge to Chicago and built a great team of young hitters. He will build his pitching staff of players that have done the TJ thing already, have a proven track record and want to play on a team that has a shot at a ring for several years to come. DD looked like he was heading down the same path by not going small at pitching but rather going after Sale. Swapping Pomerantz for Espinoza was risky but it paid off. Pomerantz still has potential to become a long-term keeper.
Now, we have Sale, Price (not good in post season and injured at the moment), Pomerantz, Porcello (who wasn’t on anyone’s radar until last year and it looks like last year was an anomoly) and EROD. Potentially, 4 viable pitchers for the playoffs that are all lefty and Porcello who might be in AAA by Sept if he continues to pitch poorly.
Time to take advantage of others by sending stud potential to other teams for a reliable pitcher if you want to compete for a ring. Verlander is the most proven of the pitchers available. Sale, Verlander, Price would be tough to beat if the Red Sox ever start hitting again. Give the other team Porcello if they will pay some of Verlander’s salary!! Oh, and please throw in Fister in the deal. He has less ability than Porcello and that speaks volumes about how bad he is. So, Groome, Porcello and Fister plus relief on Verlander’s salary for Verlander. Detroit gets back Porcello adds depth with Fister and gets the young stud Groome in the deal. We don’t increase our payroll and swap out Verlander for Porcello and we’ll never have to watch Fister throw 85 mph fastballs and lose games!!! Seems like a win-win for Boston and Detroit!!
My bet, Theo beats us to Verlander and we limp into the post season on one leg, SALE.
The risk of trading big leaguers who are getting it done (Pom) for a sox prospect…or any prospect. We have a daily diet of that risk taking in SD. Another Jackass (AJ) has convinced his boss he is the smartest guy in the room but it will take 3-5 years to find out. The Maven on the Padres is our pitching coach. He takes over the hill vets, rejects from other teams, rule 5 pick ups and turns them around. Our manager is very smart and gets our roster of scrubs to play hard! Welcome to the Pesky Padres!
Adams: complete your article and give the reader some idea of what the Rays have to offer the Padres for Hand. Or are we just throwing BS against the wall to see what sticks. I hope we get a mother lode for Hand…but we will likely get 3 eighteen year old prospects. Keeping him worked with Kimbral.
This is why you don’t trade an establihed arm for a single prospect, even if it is a “can’t miss” one. Bad deal then, and a horrible deal right now. Imagine the package Pomeranz would command in a trade right now.