SAN FRANCISCO — The Giants unfortunately are pretty familiar with the process by now when it comes to elbow injuries for young pitchers, but the news that came out Tuesday afternoon was a bit different. There wasn’t as much hesitation as in the past, or as much of an emphasis on seeking a second opinion. The press release about Blade Tidwell noted that he had suffered a “high-grade sprain” of his UCL.“It’s pretty concerning,” Tidwell said. “It’s not something that I want, but it happens to most pitchers in today’s game, so I know I can get through it.”
Right after a 3-2 loss to the Minnesota Twins, the other shoe dropped. Dr. Ken Akizuki examined Tidwell’s MRI results and recommended surgery, which would knock the right-hander out until the 2028 MLB season.
It also adds him to a growing and concerning list. Hayden Birdsong had Tommy John in March, and in the second half, Trevor McDonald and Carson Whisenhunt have gone under the knife.
For the Giants, this is all of a sudden a crisis. Tidwell was right that this does happen to a very high percentage of young pitchers these...