SoftBank Hawks’ star pitcher Liván Moinelo underwent surgery earlier today for osteochondritis dissecans in the elbow of his throwing arm. According to the information provided by Dr. Francisco Montesinos, medical manager of the Cuban baseball commission and federation, the intervention was successful.
Two free bodies were extracted, made up of fragments of bone and cartilage, and the player is doing very well in these first hours of recovery, explained the doctor. The next thing will be to wait for the stitches to heal and he is able to travel to complete part of the rehabilitation in Cuba, added the specialist.
He recalled that the decision to operate was made upon discovering the free bodies in the area, but not because he felt pain that prevented him from working effectively. Moinelo will not be available for the Cuban team during the 2023 Pan American Games in Santiago de Chile this November.
🔴⚫El 26 de julio es un día de fiesta para #Cuba 🇨🇺.
Desde Japón 🇯🇵 nos llegan buenísimas noticias.
⚾️El estelar lanzador Livan Moinelo fue operado con éxito de una ostiocondritis disecante en la nación nipona.
‼Desde #PinardelRío pronta recuperación ‼
✍️ Osbel Benítez Polo pic.twitter.com/Wx7anSEKbk— TelePinar (@TelePinar) July 26, 2023
The Cuban is SoftBank’s setup man and the precursor to closer Roberto Osuna. Moinelo is only the 4th foreign reliever with more than 150 holds in Nippon League history. The diminutive hurler is arguably the best lefty reliever the Pacific League. On the season the southpaw had 3 wins, 13 holds and five saves all as team’s setup man. In 27 ⅔ innings pitched he has also fanned 37 batters.
When the left-hander will take the mound again is not known is this time, but with this type of injury the team might take its time and not rush the Cuban in his recovery. Moinelo has been part of the Cuban National Team for close to a decade now and has also seen action in the Pan-American Games, Caribbean World Series and various World Baseball Classics.