Ervin Santana Underwent Surgery on Finger; Out 10-12 Weeks with Injury
February 6, 2018
Minnesota Twins pitcher Ervin Santana will miss 10-12 weeks after undergoing surgery on the middle finger of his throwing hand, per Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com.
The current timeline will force him to miss all of spring training as well as the start of the regular season.
Santana is set to enter his fourth year with the Twins and his 14th season in the majors.
He is coming off one of his best seasons, finishing 16-8 with a 3.28 ERA, leading the league with five complete games and three shutouts.
Not only did he earn his second career All-Star appearance in 2017, he also finished seventh in the Cy Young voting.
Unfortunately, the 35-year-old will now get a late start to the 2018 season while recovering from his recent injury. This could be especially damaging as he tries to earn his $14 million team option for 2019 which automatically vests if he reaches 400 innings pitched between 2017 and 2018, per Spotrac.
Meanwhile, the Twins rotation has a lot of work to do after suffering from inconsistency behind Santana throughout last season. Jose Berrios showcased a lot of talent last season but is still inexperienced, while Adalberto Mejia and Kyle Gibson have struggled.
Free-agent addition Michael Pineda could provide a boost this season, but the Twins might have to add more depth to help overcome this injury.
