The Orioles informed reporters, including Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com, that right-hander Noah Denoyer underwent Tommy John surgery this week. Given the typical recovery timeline of that procedure, he will miss the remainder of this season and likely all of 2024 as well.
Denoyer, now 25, was added to the Orioles’ 40-man roster in November of last year to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft. He had tossed 71 2/3 innings in 2022, split between multiple levels, with an earned run average of 2.89. He also struck out 35.5% of batters faced while walking just 6.1%. Given those strong results, it was natural that the club was worried about some other team plucking him away.
But he wasn’t able to carry those results over in 2023. He has thrown 51 1/3 innings at the Triple-A level with an ERA of 5.61, almost double last year’s mark in that category. His 25.8% strikeout rate is still decent but a significant drop-off from last year, while his walk rate shot all the way up to 15.6%.
The righty was never called up to make his major league debut and was designated for assignment in June. He passed through waivers unclaimed and was outrighted, sticking in the organization. He’ll now be faced with a long road back to the roster, as he will almost certainly miss the entire 2024 season. He’ll be 27 years old when the 2025 season comes around.
An undrafted free agent in 2019 that made it all the way to the 40 last fall. Great story. Gets to AAA this year and the wheels fall off . Bummer. Get healthy Noah!
Wishing Noah a speedy recovery from TJ. hope he comes back strong and adds to his game during rehab. Love to see some homegrown pitching talent as the O’s open their window of relevancy.
Hopefully someone will figure out this rash of TJ injuries in past 30 years that seem to be increasing by the year. Way too many injuries, something needs to be done
Seems to me like these guys need a new approach to pitching instead of trying to throw gas all the time. Triple digits on the radar gun is impressive but not when it leads to a career changing lengthy stint on the IL. What’s more impressive is a guy who understands the art of pitching with finesse. It’s also much more sustainable.
Coaches take note!