The Houston Astros have been without star pitcher Justin Verlander nearly all season after he suffered a forearm strain after his first start of the year.
Unfortunately, it appears that the injury was more severe after Verlander announced on Saturday that he would undergo Tommy John Surgery to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament.
Verlander, who won the 2019 AL Cy Young Award after a dominant season with the ‘Stros, is expected to go under the knife in the coming weeks for the first time in his long career.
The 37-year-old pitcher still doesn’t have an exact timeline for his recovery from the surgery, but the most likely scenario appears to be that he will miss the majority, if not all, of the 2021 season.
This is the first time that the surefire Hall of Famer will miss extended time in his career, as he has made 30+ starts in 13 of the past 14 seasons. Verlander’s durability has been matched by few pitchers over the past two decades, but it seems as if that streak will come to an unfortunate end.
Verlander will hit the free agent market after the 2021 season, and will now have more doubts than ever about his future after undergoing major surgery at such an advanced age.
