GLdiI8EXgAAGTsh
(Queens, NY) – Baseball’s unending list of elbow injuries suffered by pitchers has a new entry: Calvin Ziegler, who is among the New York Mets top pitching prospects, needs Tommy John surgery according to reports.
It’s an especially unfortunate development for Ziegler, who missed almost all of last season after undergoing bone spur surgery and then tearing his quad muscle while rehabbing.
Mets 22nd-ranked prospect Calvin Ziegler will undergo Tommy John surgery and miss this season, a source confirmed. It's another blow for the organization's second-rounder in 2021, who has struggled through injuries ever since. (First with news: @mikemayer22)
— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) April 18, 2024
Ziegler threw just one inning last year with the bone spur issue, and then returned in September to strike out all three batters he faced. That was at Low-A St. Lucie, which led to a promotion and Ziegler’s debut at High-A Brooklyn this spring.
The early returns were promising for the right hander as he tossed four perfect innings and struck out nine batters – eight of those Ks came in a row. Then, Ziegler followed that up with two hitless frames on Sunday in what was his second start of the season. It turned out to be his last work here in 2024 as well.
Ziegler, a native of Canada drafted in 2021, had to shut it down after those two innings with his elbow barking. The second round pick will need Tommy John surgery to repair the UCL in his throwing elbow – as first reported by Metsmerized. That means he won’t be able to get back onto a mound until this time next year at the earliest.
Mets prospect Calvin Ziegler will undergo Tommy John surgery https://t.co/XJpF9mbbya pic.twitter.com/k9iTWXmfBa
— SNY (@SNYtv) April 18, 2024
It’s a bummer for both Ziegler and the Mets as they look to build up their minor league system – perhaps especially on the pitching side after prospects Brett Baty, Francisco Alvarez, and Ronny Mauricio graduated to the show.
Earlier this week, Triple-A right hander Christian Scott was added to the Baseball America Top 100 Prospects List. But after that boost, the Ziegler injury is a down note.
