Chicago White Sox Pitcher Michael Kopech Likely To Undergo Tommy John Surgery
(CBS) -- Chicago White Sox pitcher Michael Kopech is likely to require Tommy John surgery and will be out of action until the 2020 season, the team announced.
Michael Kopech will likely undergo Tommy John surgery after tests revealed a tear in his UCL. He is expected to be ready for Spring Training in 2020.
— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) September 7, 2018
He will receive a second opinion in the days coming to confirm today's diagnosis.
On Wednesday loss to Detroit, Kopech (1-1) was tagged for seven runs on nine hits in 3 1/3 innings. He struck out six, walked one and surrendered all four Tigers homers as his ERA jumped from 0.82 to 5.02.
The surgery is used to repair damage to the elbow and is named after pitcher Tommy John, who was the first MLB pitcher to come back from such an injury with the surgery, in which a healthy tendon is extracted to repair the damaged one.
Tried to not react to tweets on vacation. But damn... #WhiteSox https://t.co/6QFvvhivfs
— Ryan Baker (@RyanBakerMedia) September 7, 2018
It is more formally known as ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) reconstruction.
Kopech joined the Sox in the minor leagues in 2016 as part of team's trade of pitcher Chris Sale. Expectations were high for the pitcher, whose fastball often is clocked at 100 mph or more. He made his major league debut earlier this year.