Reyes Moronta Undergoes Shoulder Surgery

TODAY: Moronta’s recovery period is expected to last roughly 11 months, Bruce Bochy told Crowley and other reporters.

Sept. 11: Moronta’s surgery actually went a bit better than expected, tweets Kerry Crowley of the San Jose Mercury News. While Moronta’s labrum was damaged and repaired, his shoulder capsule did not need repair.

Sept. 9: Giants reliever Reyes Moronta is slated to undergo surgery on his right shoulder labrum, the club informed reporters including MLB.com’s Maria Guardado (Twitter link). The procedure will end his 2019 season and send him on a lengthy rehabilitation process that will surely extend well into the ensuing campaign.

Shoulder procedures are laden with risk for pitchers, so this is rather concerning news. That said, plenty have made their way back to being quality major-leaguers after going under the knife. The details of the injury, the work that’ll ultimately be done, and the course of rehab will all play into the odds in ways we can’t accurately gauge given what’s known at present.

Moronta has been a major part of the San Francisco relief corps since first reaching the bigs late in 2017. Through 128 1/3 total innings, he owns a 2.66 ERA with 11.2 K/9 and 5.1 BB/9. While that walk rate obviously isn’t optimal, Moronta has limited the damage by tamping down on long balls (0.63 HR/9, 7.0 HR/FB%) to this point in his career.

This injury represents a blow not only to the Giants’ 2019 bullpen, but also to Moronta’s earnings outlook. He’ll be a 2+ service-class player next year and will earn service time while sidelined. Barring a stunningly quick return to action, he will not have much of a chance (if any) to compile a platform season in advance of arbitration after the 2020 campaign.