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Brendan McKay Undergoes Thoracic Outlet Surgery

By Anthony Franco | November 24, 2021 at 8:42pm CDT

Rays two-way player Brendan McKay underwent thoracic outlet syndrome decompression surgery yesterday, the team informed reporters (including Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times). He’s expected to begin throwing in early February, and the team remains hopeful he can be ready for mound work by the start of Spring Training. The club added that the focus of his rehab process will be on pitching.

If all goes according to plan, it doesn’t seem this procedure will have an impact on McKay’s health for the start of the 2022 campaign. That said, it’s another unfortunate injury development in a long line of recent health issues. The southpaw missed the shortened 2020 season on account of a shoulder problem that eventually required surgery. That kept him out of action until late June of this year. Just a few outings into a minor league rehab stint, he suffered a flexor strain in his forearm that again proved to be season-ending.

The injuries have limited the former #4 overall draft pick to just 49 MLB innings, all of which came back in 2019. McKay’s situation with the club could be complicated by his roster status, as he’s currently slated to be out of minor league options. In that instance, the team would need to either carry him on the active roster (or major league injured list) all season or risk losing him on waivers. Topkin reported earlier this month that the Rays expect they’ll be granted a fourth option year because of McKay’s repeated injury issues, though. That would allow the team to shuttle him between Tampa and Triple-A Durham through the end of next season.

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Tampa Bay Rays Brendan McKay

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26 Comments

  1. Kewldood69

    4 years ago

    Bummer. People don’t really flourish after this one – Chris Archer, Matt Harvey etc.

    6
    Reply
    • davidk1979

      4 years ago

      Phil Hughes too

      4
      Reply
      • The Mets "Missed WAR"

        4 years ago

        Wait until you see how bad Stephen Strasburg is going to be while making $35 million a year for the next half decade. That has to be the worst contract in baseball.

        It’s crazy how great the Rays are with the little money they spend. They rely almost totally on trading and drafting. They spent the #4 pick on this guy and still had the best regular season team in the American League. That’s all while playing in the toughest division in baseball.

        A third of their season is against the Blue Jays, Yankees and Red Sox. No money. Blew a #4 pick. Still the best team in the AL. It almost sounds too good to be true. Like the owner sold his soul to the devil or something. How can you blow picks this high and spend no money while facing a schedule like that and still be the best team in the league? What’s their secret?

        7
        Reply
        • mt in baltimore

          4 years ago

          Every MLB team misses on their top draft picks in some years. Even the Rays.

          4
          Reply
        • dodgers32

          4 years ago

          The Rays spend money wisely where the bottom half of teams don’t, in scouting and player development. If you look at team s with barren minor league systems, except for those that repeatedly trade away top prospects year after year chasing a championship that never comes (ahem, Padres, Mariners) others draft poorly. The Phillies are an example. So are the Orioles. And the Pirates. It’s the only way the Rays could compete given their small market status. Friedman in LA, a former Rays, exec, has done the same thing with the Dodgers minor league system and has turned that around after the McCourt years. Chaim Bloom is doing the same thing in Boston. Those teams also have big money to spend on free agents and the combination makes the perennial powerhouses. The more former Rays execs that get disbursed throughout the league to those “have not” teams, those turn-arounds will begin. Evan Neander may eventually be next as purportedly Stuart Sternberg prefers his employees to be “at will” without a contract. That’s how Friedman walked away to the Dodgers.

          1
          Reply
        • kylelohse

          4 years ago

          Perhaps you missed that “Eric” Neander signed a multi-year extension with the Rays just two months ago. He’s not going anywhere.

          1
          Reply
        • old man hub

          4 years ago

          Check yourself, the Rays haven’t drafted well. Kiermaier (rd 31), Brandon Lowe (rd 3) Fleming (rd 5) and McClanahan (rd1) were the 4 players drafted by Tampa on the major league roster last year. Fortunately, they flip players like baseball cards. They’re 1st round history is not bueno.

          1
          Reply
        • kenny217

          4 years ago

          The Ray’s success at drafting is overrated.

          1
          Reply
    • Fever Pitch Guy

      4 years ago

      Thoughts and prayers for a speedy recovery.

      9
      Reply
    • miltpappas

      4 years ago

      Isn’t this what Tyler Thornburg had also?

      1
      Reply
      • Fever Pitch Guy

        4 years ago

        Yup, turned into a horrible trade for the Sox because of it.

        1
        Reply
  2. LordD99

    4 years ago

    Wow. Hope he recovers. Tough surgery for a pitcher.

    3
    Reply
  3. tstats

    4 years ago

    Poor guy can’t catch a break

    1
    Reply
  4. amk1920

    4 years ago

    Why not try him as a hitter? McKay has had a mountain of issues as a pitcher.

    5
    Reply
    • DarkSide830

      4 years ago

      because he’s barely hit since college.

      Reply
      • GASoxFan

        4 years ago

        But the way things have gone, he hasn’t been pitching much either, unfortunately.

        4
        Reply
    • balloonknots

      4 years ago

      Cause he is a lefty that can throw hard n strikes … pitching is the best option

      1
      Reply
  5. twins33

    4 years ago

    This is the death of his pitching career. Hope he makes it as a hitter

    5
    Reply
  6. angt222

    4 years ago

    Hopefully he makes a full recovery but at least he has hitting to fallback on.

    3
    Reply
  7. el jefe

    4 years ago

    As a hitter, he’s overall below average with a decent eye and some pop being his only redeeming qualities. As a pitcher, well… has anyone actually bounced back after TOS? Maybe I’m a pessimist, but McKay is looking more and more like a bust both ways.

    Reply
    • BeforeMcCourt

      4 years ago

      There is a pitcher in Arizona, I think Merrill Kelly, who had a decent bounce back year after his surgery. The number of pitchers having the surgery is increasing, which tells me they are more confident they will be able to recover from it than they were maybe 5-10 years ago

      2
      Reply
      • InscrutableJane

        4 years ago

        Chris Young had the surgery in 2013 and then had a career year in 2014, so there’s hope at least. The improved blood flow and/or nerve conduction to his throwing arm probably won’t make things worse, anyway, and often it makes other arm injuries less likely and quicker/easier to heal from.

        Reply
  8. RobM

    4 years ago

    There have been some pitchers who have come back to pitch after TOS, but the list is short. Hopefully he’s one of them.

    4
    Reply
  9. Paclypse71

    4 years ago

    It was all downhill when his parents named him after a combination of 90210 characters.

    9
    Reply
  10. I’mJustBetter

    4 years ago

    He’s no longer a two-way player

    Reply
  11. ReyRey

    4 years ago

    Well, the Rays burn through another pitcher. Par for the organization. Insurance company must love them.

    1
    Reply

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