The Miami Marlins are worried that they may lose ace starting pitcher Jose Fernandez to season-ending elbow surgery, according to multiple reports.
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Fernandez was placed on the 15-day disabled list on Monday due to a sprained right elbow on Monday, but the team fears that the injury could be worse as it waits for more information from the results of an MRI in Los Angeles.
The fear is that Fernandez could end up needing Tommy John surgery and that he'll become the next in a long line of starting pitchers that have been sidelined with severe elbow injuries this year. The recovery time from such procedures usually lasts from 12-18 months.
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The Marlins (20-19) have been very cautious with their highly coveted ace, but the team knows that people will begin to analyze what went wrong if in fact he does need the surgery.
"That's probably what everyone is going to talk about and continue to talk about," manager Mike Redmond said per ESPN. "We've protected him. We've been consistent in how we've used him, with his workload. We've given him extra days. That's a question I don't think anybody has the answer to."
The 21-year-old phenom is 4-2 in 2014 with a 2.44 ERA in eight starts this season while he leads the entire MLB with 70 strikeouts. Fernandez went 12-6 in his rookie season in 2013 with a 2.19 ERA while picking up the National League Rookie of the Year Award and finishing third in NL Cy Young Award voting.
Fernandez labored through his last start against the San Diego Padres, giving up six runs in five innings while losing velocity on his fastball.
"I think you're always concerned when you're talking about elbows," Redmond told ESPN. "That's something we have to wait to find out. But I think we're always concerned about that with pitchers, especially."
There have been no updates on Fernandez's elbow at this time, but the Marlins are bracing for the worst.
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