In what doesn’t amount to surprising news after an MRA revealed ligament damage to Tsuyoshi Wada’s pitching elbow last week, the Japanese pitcher will require Tommy John surgery to repair it.
FOX Sport’s Ken Rosenthal reports the left-hander will need the procedure to repair a ligament tear, which would clearly end his 2012 season before the 31-year-old was able to make his major league debut. Wada was placed on the 15-day disabled list in late March after complaining of elbow soreness.
There was some hope that Wada would be able to rest and rehab the injury, but that plan of attack often results in simply delaying the inevitable surgical procedure.
Wada pitched in just two Grapefruit League games, allowing five earned runs in five innings, and was shut down again after a disastrous rehab start for Triple-A Norfolk on April 19 in which he surrendered six earned runs in just 2 2/3 innings.
Executive vice president of baseball operations Dan Duquette signed him to a two-year, $8.14 million contract last December. The deal includes a team option for 2014.
