Astros' Lance McCullers to Miss 2019 Season After Undergoing Tommy John Surgery

Houston Astros pitcher Lance McCullers will undergo Tommy John surgery and miss all of the 2019 season.

Bob Nightengale of USA Today reported the news. 

McCullers, 25, was injured in August while swinging a bat before returning to pitch five postseason innings.

"If he has surgery, no. If he doesn't, yes," general manager Jeff Luhnow told reporters when asked whether McCullers would pitch in 2019. "Any time you're talking about an elbow injury, (surgery) is one path to resolving it."

McCullers went 10-6 with a 3.86 ERA and 1.17 WHIP last season. He has missed time in each of the last three seasons due to injury.  

The Astros' once-formidable rotation is starting to show signs of cracks with Dallas Keuchel and Charlie Morton also due to hit free agency. Losing McCullers will make retaining one or both of those players paramount if the Astros hope to keep their postseason streak.

McCullers, meanwhile, will be on a long road to restoring his health and hopefully getting back to his former performance level in 2020.