The Yankees got more rough injury news Monday when manager Aaron Boone announced righty reliever Jonathan Loaisiga had elbow surgery to remove a bone spur. Loasiga won’t throw for 3-6 weeks and is expected back in August or September.
Jonathan Loaisiga will have surgery tomorrow to remove a bone spur. 3-6 weeks of no throwing, Aaron Boone said.
— Bryan Hoch ⚾️ (@BryanHoch) May 1, 2023
Loasiga was off to another strong start in 2023 despite playing in just three games. He posted a 2.70 ERA in that small sample and has been a consistently good arm out of the Yankee bullpen for a few years.
Unfortunately for the Yankees, this is par for the course for Jonathan Loaisiga. He’s endured a mixed bag of elbow and shoulder injuries since debuting in 2018. Loasiga then became a full-time reliever in 2021 and has a 2.95 ERA since.
The bad luck keeps on coming for the Bronx Bombers. Loaisiga’s injury is just the latest plaguing the team. New York will miss his power sinker and knack for inducing much-needed groundballs in close games. Given all the other injuries to key players, this is not the news the Yankees wanted.
Giancarlo Stanton is out at least another month with a strained hamstring. None of Carlos Rodon, Luis Severino, nor Tommy Kahnle has pitched yet this season. Is Josh Donaldson even still on the team?
The good news is that bullpen-building is a core strength of general manager Brian Cashman and Jonathan Loaisiga won’t be devastatingly missed. Someone like Ron Marinaccio or even a returning Kahnle can step up in his absence. Clarke Schmidt also has a solid two-seamer and can serve the Yankees better as a reliever once he’s no longer needed in the rotation.
Losing Jonathan Loaisiga isn’t a death sentence for the struggling Yankees, but they’re tied for last in the AL East a month into the season. The team had better get healthy and start hitting, and fast.