Former Mariner Michael Pineda is done for the season with an anterior labrum tear in his right shoulder. Pineda injured his shoulder just 15 pitches into a rehab start in Tampa on Saturday.
Pineda is scheduled for surgery on Tuesday in Manhattan by New York Mets’ team physician Dr. David Altchek. The recovery time is expected to be a minimum of 12 months if everything goes well.
The big right-hander was the centerpiece of a blockbuster trade last off-season. Pineda was sent to the Yankees, along with pitching prospect Jose Campos, in exchange for Jesus Montero and Hector Noesi – the crown jewel of the Yankee farm system. Yankee GM Brian Cashman said that Montero is the best player he has ever traded.
It’s a sad day for the Yankees. They were counting on Pineda to be the stud he was during the first half of last season for the Mariners. Last year Pineda made the All-Star team as a rookie and then was shut down for the season after pitching 173 innings. He finished last year with a 9-10 record and a 3.74 ERA.
However, the 23-year old Pineda reported to Yankee camp 20 pounds overweight and never got things back on track. His velocity has been down and he’s been on the disabled list since March 30th.
“For this year, it’s a loss,” Yankee manager Joe Giradi said. “He was a guy that we were counting on this year. We traded for him, but unfortunately, he’s hurt. We are going to have to get him back at some point next year.”
It’s a good thing there are no trade-backs in baseball. Both Montero and Noesi have been productive with the Mariners. Montero is batting .254 and has been playing well at catcher. Noesi pitched a gem against Oakland and got lit up in his other two starts.
The Yankee GM is denying he got duped in the trade. “In no way do I believe, or do the New York Yankees believe, that the Seattle Mariners had any knowledge of any issues here with Michael Pineda prior to the trade or anything of that nature,” Cashman said.
“He was (a) fully healthy player we acquired,” Cashman continued. “We had full access to his medicals, which were clean. We had the opportunity to do a full physical exam, which we did, which came out clean. Michael has never had a shoulder issue nor has he complained of one with the Mariners, nor has he ever had any tests on the shoulder with the Mariners.”
The injury is not a tragic one for the Yankees this season. Andy Pettite is coming back from retirement. He is pitching for the Trenton Thunder and is expected to return to the Yankees in a couple of weeks. If Pineda comes back with a bum shoulder and doesn’t recover his lost velocity, then this injury will go down as one of the worst sustained by a young pitcher.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
