ST. LOUIS (KMOX) - The St. Louis Cardinals announced Tuesday that Jordan Hicks will undergo Tommy John surgery Wednesday morning and will be out for the remainder of the year.
Typically the rehab time after this type of surgery is around 12-13 months and Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak gave an update on Hicks' situation Tuesday afternoon saying, "the fact that he's not a starter should allow Hicks to come back at a quicker rate" and wanted to wait until after the surgery to give a better timetable for Hicks' possible return.
"That's how I pitch," Hicks says. "So whatever comes with that is what comes with it. I think that Tommy John is not strictly about how hard you throw, it's about how many times you throw. It's just something that's part of this game."
Hicks said his arm just "felt different" on his four pitches of Saturday afternoon's game, when he was pulled during the 9th inning. He said he has already spoke to some teammates who gave him advice about the surgey and rehab process.
"It's going to be a grind, it's going to be about how much effort you put in to it and what you really want for yourself," Hicks says. "I want to come back strong and I want to play a long time so my mentality is just stay strong in my head, just work hard and get back."
Mozeliak says he and manager Mike Shildt made the decision to named Carlos Martinez the closer. The Cardinals were planning to stretch Martinez out more this season to prepare him to possibly return to the starting rotation either this season or next year. Mozeliak says that still may happen, in the form of two-inning saves.
"He's built for it," Shildt says. "Not only being his competitive spirit and his desire to seek big moments, but also his ability to execute a lot of plus pitchers."
The team learned of the injury Monday following an MRI examination of Hicks right elbow, that the reliever has a torn ulnar collateral ligament and the team is determining the next course of action for Hicks.
Hicks, 22, was removed from Saturday’s (June 22) game in the 9th inning after 1.1 innings pitched. The second-year reliever is 2-2 with a 3.14 ERA and team-leading 14 saves in his 29 games pitched this season, striking out 31 in his 28.2 innings of work.
Mozeliak also had an update on Alex Reyes, who left Sunday's start with Triple-A Memphis with a pectoral strain and will miss the next two or three starts.