Johan Oviedo will have to undergo Tommy John surgery according to several sources. The operation will take place in the next few days and he will miss all of next season. The colleague Francys Romero confirmed the surgery in a tweet yesterday.
A few days ago, information coming from journalist Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette emerged in which he reported that the Cuban right-hander was dealing with an arm injury that was expected to be serious; today it is confirmed that he will have to undergo surgery.
An already depleted Pittsburgh Pirates rotation now faces more uncertainty with this news about the capital pitcher. Oviedo came to the Pirates in the 2022 trade that sent left-hander José Quintana to the division rival Cardinals. Prior to the revelation of this injury, the right-hander had been locked into a spot in the 2024 rotation after making 32 starts last year and posting a 4.31 ERA over 177.2 innings of work.
It wasn’t an elite season in MLB for him particularly when combined with strikeout rates (20.6%) and walks (10.6%), but Oviedo at least looked like a solid fourth starter who could be trusted to take the ball every five games and keep his team in the game. Without a doubt, it will be a complicated rehabilitation process for the Havana native after achieving a breakthrough year in the big leagues, but he will strive to return stronger in 2025.
Cuban RHP Johan Oviedo (25) will require surgery Tommy John, per sources.
He will undergo surgery in the upcoming days. pic.twitter.com/P8armohbHY
— Francys Romero (@francysromeroFR) November 25, 2023