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Hochevar to Seek 2nd Opinion
Friday, July 29
Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com reported Hochevar's first diagnosis suggested thoracic outlet surgery; however, the reliever will seek a second opinion before undergoing the season-ending surgery.
Injury Could Shed Light on Hochevar's Struggles
As Kansas City's seventh-inning man ahead of Kelvin Herrera and closer Wade Davis in the bullpen, Hochevar had a 2.90 ERA heading into the month of July.
But in 6.1 innings over seven July outings, Hochevar has allowed six earned runs, the most he's allowed in a month all season.
It's ballooned his ERA to 3.86, which is on pace for his worst mark since 2012.
Thursday's news could provide an explanation as to why he's struggled, though. New York Mets ace Matt Harvey recently underwent season-ending surgery July 18 because of thoracic outlet syndrome.
NJ.com's Maria Guardado explained what a player experiences while suffering from thoracic outlet syndrome: "TOS...is caused by the compression of nerves near the neck and shoulder and can result in tingling in the arm or hand."
That makes it difficult to comfortably grip and throw a baseball.
While Harvey needed to have a rib removed "to relieve some of the pressure off an entrapped nerve," per Guardado, it is unclear at the moment what kind of recovery options Hochevar has been presented with.
With Hochevar shelved, the Royals announced they recalled pitcher Brooks Pounders from Triple-A. The 25-year-old has appeared in three games this season, pitching just four innings. But in that span, he allowed six runs, including two home runs, resulting in a 13.50 ERA.
Numbers like that won't help the defending champions as they struggle to make a playoff push, so expect veterans Joakim Soria and Chien-Ming Wang to see an increase in their usage as the team attempts to fill the void.
