MIAMI _ Caleb Smith chose the option that should ensure his return to full health by the start of next season.
Smith, the Miami Marlins' most consistent starter so far and one of the top-performing rookie pitchers in baseball, elected to undergo season-ending shoulder surgery after he suffered a grade 3 lat strain last week in Colorado.
"Once we found out the MRI (results), we knew he'd miss the season," Marlins manager Don Mattingly said. "He looked at his options and he felt this was best for him."
Smith, who was acquired along with Garrett Cooper in a trade with the New York Yankees in November for international pool money, was leading all MLB rookies with 88 strikeouts at the time of his injury.
Smith, 26, went 5-6 with a 4.19 ERA in 771/3 innings (16 starts) and won three of his past four decisions with the Marlins, going 6-1 over his seven starts before getting hurt.
"Our young guys didn't know a lot about him at first other than what we heard from (Marlins Vice President of Player Development) Gary (Denbo) and the Yankees guys and seeing his numbers," Mattingly said. "The swing and miss on his fastball opened our eyes as seeing this guy is kind of elite from the standpoint of swing and miss. When you put that all together with his breaking stuff, his changeup, command and all that, knowing that's there is a great starting block."
