Houston Astros' starting pitcher Luis Garcia to undergo Tommy John surgery, ending his 2023 season
Garcia, 26, threw just eight pitches during his last start against San Francisco.
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- The Houston Astros will now have to quickly pivot for the rest of their World Series title-defense season after they announced a major season-ending surgery for one of their young rotation pitchers.
Luis Garcia, who threw just eight pitches before leaving the team's win with right elbow discomfort Monday night, will miss the rest of the 2023 season to undergo ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction surgery, which is commonly known as Tommy John surgery.
An operation date was not immediately set.
Astros general manager Dana Brown expects the 26-year-old to return at some point during the 2024 season.
Some of the team's starting pitchers have had to confront the potentially career-altering operation over the last several years.
Former Astros ace Justin Verlander famously ended his 2020 season after one start and didn't play for the entirety of 2021 due to recovering from it, only to bounce back in 2022 to win another American League Cy Young Award.
Current Astro, Lance McCullers Jr., also underwent a Tommy John procedure before the 2019 season. He returned in time for the 2020 postseason. He's currently on the 15-day injured list with a forearm injury but may soon return to the team.
Garcia's exit against San Francisco on Monday came a day after platoonmate Jose Urquidy left his start against Philadelphia with reported right shoulder inflammation. Urquidy is on the 15-day IL as well.
Hours before the Garcia announcement, the Astros called up starting pitcher JP France from Triple-A Sugar Land. He's slated to make his Major League debut Saturday against Seattle.
