Brendan McKay To Undergo Tommy John Surgery

Rays southpaw Brendan McKay will undergo Tommy John surgery next week, reports Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (Twitter link). He’s expected to miss the entire 2023 campaign.

It’s the latest in a staggering series of significant injuries for the former #4 overall pick. McKay hasn’t thrown a single major league pitch since 2019, as he’s been plagued by an almost unfathomable string of bad luck. He missed the shortened 2020 season on account of a shoulder problem that eventually required surgery. The rehab from that procedure kept him out of action until late June 2021. Just a few outings into a minor league rehab stint, McKay suffered a flexor strain in his forearm that again proved to be season-ending. He was then diagnosed with thoracic outlet syndrome and underwent surgery to correct that issue last November.

McKay spent most of 2022 on the injured list recovering from the TOS procedure. He set out on a rehab assignment in mid-July and spent his allotted 30-day window pitching back to Triple-A. The Rays then formally reinstated McKay from the IL but kept him in Durham on an optional assignment. A few days later, he suffered a UCL injury while pitching with the Bulls.

Before all of the injuries, McKay was one of the sport’s most unique young talents. A two-way superstar at the University of Louisville, he’s continued to dabble in the two-way experiment in pro ball.