Reds' Top Prospect Hunter Greene to Undergo Tommy John Surgery on Elbow Injury

On Monday, the Cincinnati Reds announced pitching prospect Hunter Greene needs Tommy John surgery after he suffered a setback in his elbow.

Greene is just 19 years old, but injuries have already been a dominant storyline early in his career. He sprained his UCL in August and missed the rest of the season but elected not to undergo surgery at the time and instead strengthen it as he looked toward the 2019 campaign.

"The positive, if there is any such thing, is that if it happens now when he's 18, he'll still only be 19 and ready to go," then-Reds interim manager Jim Riggleman said at the time, per Kyle Melnick of MLB.com. "You almost figure it's going to happen. It happens to so many of them that I'm not in the least bit surprised."

Unfortunately for the Reds, he will not be ready to go at 19 following this setback.

According to MLB.com, Greene is the No. 31 prospect in the entire league and the No. 3 prospect in the Reds' system. Cincinnati selected him with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2017 draft, and he features a power arm with a fastball that can touch triple digits.

However, he struggled in 2018 while pitching in Single-A and finished with a 4.48 ERA, 1.30 WHIP and 89 strikeouts in 68.1 innings.

Greene figures to be an important part of the future for a team that hasn't made the playoffs since the 2013 campaign, but his progress will be delayed with this news.