Things were looking up this week for the Lookouts with the return of Stephen Gonsalves to the starting rotation and Tyler Jay to the bullpen.
Friday the team received some bad news. Nick Burdi, the Twins' No.
16 prospect, has a tear of the ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in his right elbow and will undergo Tommy John surgery.
Given the typical timetable for recovery, the procedure will sideline him for the remainder of the 2017 season and likely the start of the 2018 campaign.
Burdi owns a 0.53 ERA and 0.76 WHIP with 20 strikeouts and four walks in 14 appearances (17 innings) with Chattanooga this season.
He last pitched Sunday, when he allowed three hits over 1 1/3 scoreless frames against Biloxi.
The 24-year-old right-hander was taken in the second round of the 2014 Draft out of Louisville and has developed a reputation for his fastball that can hit triple digits.
This is not Burdi's first run-in with injury issues, however. He made only three appearances with Chattanooga in 2016 before a bone bruise on his right humerus knocked him out for the season.
He's only pitched 104 innings over his four seasons in the Minors and has struck out 142 batters in that span.