Rays top lefty starter Blake Snell will undergo arthroscopic surgery Monday to remove loose bodies from his left elbow and be sidelined at least into September.
Snell said he first noticed something was amiss three or four starts ago but wasn't concerned until Tuesday when he played catch and "felt it move kind of behind" his elbow and then in throwing off the mound Wednesday he knew something was wrong and felt more acute pain and noticed it was swollen He underwent an MRI and was seen then by Dr. Koco Eaton, who will do the surgery.
"I was just upset," he said. "Felt like this whole year has kind of been that way. Started off struggling a little bit, then got it going and, then boom, my toe. Then struggled a little bit and got it going, and then this injury happened. It's just upsetting. Every time I found my groove and felt like I was about to get going, something had to get in the way. Just very frustrating."
Snell said he was happy it was not a more severe problem and has talked several times already with former Rays mate Nathan Eovoldi, who has twice undergone similar procedures. Snell first said he was "100 percent" sure he would be back in September based on what he has heard but acknowledged he doesn't know how his body will react to the surgery or how will pitch when he gets back.
"It's all going to depend on how I feel," he said. "I don't know what this is going to take. I haven't had an injury before. I'd be lying if I said 'Yeah, I'm going to be the best pitcher in the world again.' ... I know I'm going to do everything I can to make sure I'm that way."
Snell, the 2018 AL Cy Young award winner, has not had nearly as much success this season, getting off to a slow start and dealing with a freak toe injury, though pitching better of late. He is 6-7, 4.28 overall, though 2-0, 1.64 in his last four starts.
Snell's absence, even it is for six weeks or so, will be significant for the Rays as they try to reverse what has been an extended skid, and stay in the AL postseason race they led earlier in the season. He is one of the three primary starters they have been using for the bulk of the season, which already saw them lose Tyler Glasnow to injury in May.
The Snell news was first reported by The Athletic.
Snell was slated to start next for the Rays on Saturday in Toronto, which is now listed as TBA. The Rays placed him on the 10-day injured list and will announce a corresponding move on Friday. Diego Castillo has been announced as the opener for Friday's game.
Snell said he was confident the Rays would be able to stay in the race while he is out. "With the team that we have I know they're going to bounce back, they're going to be fine and they're going to ball out," he said. "I'm not worried about them."
