Astros pitch perspective Forrest Whitley was advised to undergo Tommy John surgery, according to Mark Berman of KRIV Fox 26 (Twitter link) Whitley has struggled with arm pain that has now been diagnosed as a certain UCL sprain, the team told Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link) and other reporters. No decision has yet been made on Whitley’s next move, as the right-hand is seeking a second opinion.
A 14-15 month layoff for TJ rehabilitation would be the biggest setback in a career that has been hampered by injuries. Whitley also had a forearm problem last season that led to an early stop at the Astros’ alternate training site, and he has been off the pitch due to shoulder and oblique injuries in recent years. In addition to health problems, Whitley was also suspended for 50 drug games in 2018.
Despite all these problems, Whitley’s potential is still so well regarded that he has continued to be a constant presence on the lists of the top 100 potential customers for the past four years. Selected with the 17th overall choice of the 2016 draft, Whitley is still only 23, as the Astros chose the San Antonio native as a high school student. Between injuries and suspension, however, Whitley played only 197 entries as a 2016-19 professional, and only 24 1/3 frames at the Triple-A level. This brief stint at Triple-Round Rock did not work, as Whitley was set on fire for an ERA 12.21 with nine permitted home runs.
In the short term, the Astros expected Whitley to recover from his lost season and look well enough to receive consideration for an MLB promotion sometime in 2021. In the long run, Whitley was seen as a bridge to the next generation of Rotation Houston, how Zack Greinke, Justin Verlander, and Lance McCullers Jr. everyone can be a free agent after the season (and Verlander will already lose the entire year 2021 due to his own Tommy John procedure). Framber ValdezThe season could also be in question thanks to a broken finger, which is why the Astros added some veteran stability until at least the 2022 campaign by signing Jake Odorizzi yesterday.