Los Angeles Dodgers relief pitcher Todd Coffey got some bad news on Tuesday an MRI exam revealed a partially torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow. The burly right-hander will undergo Tommy John surgery and is out for the season.
Coffey allowed two runs on Monday night to the Cincinnati Reds, the first runs he allowed since May 31. Catcher a A.J. Ellis noticed a decrease in velocity and summoned trainer Sue Falsone and manager Don Mattingly to the mound to check on Coffey, who insisted that he was fine, as he felt no pain. Coffey remained in the game and faced three more batters, striking out two.
"I did not anticipate hearing that at all. I did not feel that way, I didn't feel that bad. Last night I just felt like I wasn't getting loose. It felt like one of those nights you didn't have your 100% stuff," Coffey said. "They dropped a bombshell on me."
Coffey said he hopes to pitch again by August 2013, and possibly get back on the mound by next July. His Tommy John surgery, tentatively scheduled for some time between July 16-18, will be the second of his career, as he also had the procedure done in August 1999 and missed the entire 2000 season.
"Twelve years is a good run on Tommy John," Coffey said. "If I get another 12 out of the next one, I'll take that."
Coffey has a $2.5 million club option for 2013 that almost certainly won't be exercised, with a $300,000 buyout.
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