Veteran Miami Marlins Reliever Likely to Miss Rest of Season Following Major Hip Surgery
Miami Marlins relief pitcher Matt Barnes is scheduled to undergo left hip femoral acetabular impingement surgery on July 25, Miami Herald beat writer Jordan McPherson first reported Friday.
According to McPherson, Barnes is expected to miss three months before he can run or throw, effectively ruling him out for the rest of the 2023 season.
The 33-year-old Barnes, who is in his first season with the Marlins, had three holds, a 5.48 ERA and a 1.641 WHIP across 24 appearances so far this year. Taking out his final outing on June 1, though, Barnes had a 3.43 ERA and a 1.429 WHIP.
Barnes was placed on the 15-Day Injured List with a hip injury on June 2. Barnes made two appearances in the minors later in June, tossing one scoreless inning for the FCL Marlins in Rookie ball and three more scoreless frames for the Jupiter Hammerheads in Single-A.
The rehab assignment did not have the intended effect, though, and Barnes will likely be shut down for the year. Barnes has an $8 million team option on his contract for next season, although the Marlins would have to pay him a $2.25 million buyout if they chose to let him go come November.
Barnes and his wife, Chelsea, announced Thursday that they were expecting their first child in January.
The Marlins are 8.5 games behind the Atlanta Braves for first place in the NL East, but they are off to their best start in franchise history and currently hold the top Wild Card spot in the National League. Miami won't have Barnes in the bullpen for its upcoming playoff push, although the rest of the staff has been adjusting to his absence for over a month.
Barnes spent his entire professional career as part of the Boston Red Sox organization before they traded him to Miami for reliever Richard Bleier on Jan. 30.
The 2011 first round pick made it to the majors in 2014 and proceeded to pitch in 429 games with the Red Sox between then and 2022. Barnes' peak stretch was between 2017 and 2021, during which he put up a 25-19 record, 3.82 ERA and 1.262 WHIP.
Barnes was named an All-Star in 2021, when he boasted a 2.25 ERA through Aug. 4. He closed the season on a cold streak, however, and was eventually left off of Boston's ALDS and ALCS rosters.
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