Phillies: Aaron Nola to Miss Season with Tommy John Surgery

Phillies fans worst fear has been realized, as pitcher Aaron Nola will miss the entire 2017 season

After attempting to rehab from a sprained pitching elbow, Phillies starter Aaron Nola will undergo Tommy John surgery.

Nola struggled in his final outing of the spring for Philadelphia, allowing five runs in 1.2 innings.

As his teammates flew back to Philadelphia from Clearwater, Nola reportedly visited Dr. James Andrews to have his elbow assessed.

After determining the injured elbow ligament was not healing as expected through rehab, Dr. Andrews recommended going under the knife.

The surgery will put Nola out for the entire 2017 season, and potentially carry into the 2018 season.

With Nola out for the foreseeable future, expect Zach Eflin to fill the 23-year-olds spot on the starting rotation. Eflin had a good rookie season last year with the Phillies, but the acquisition of Clay Buchholz pushed him back to Triple-A Lehigh Valley.

Eflin will be a good contributor to the starting rotation, but the team will certainly miss their first round pick out of LSU.

Nola’s powerful arm action made many think he would some day need the surgery, but few thought it could be this soon. E

Fans should expect to see him at some point during the 2018 season when more positions open in the starting rotation.

Next: Phillies Pleasantly Surprised by Jesmuel Valentin

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