Athletics Learn They'll Lose Puk to Left Shoulder Surgery

Left-handed starter A.J. Puk was hoping this would be the year he'd break into the Oakland Athletics starting rotation. But Puk, who had Tommy John-style ligament replacement surgery in 2018, is now scheduled for shoulder surgery next Wednesday, effectively ending his season.

A.J. Puk, the left-handed starter the Oakland A’s took with their first pick in the 2016 draft, will undergo shoulder surgery next Wednesday.

For Puk, who already had Tommy John surgery in April of 2018, this is particularly disheartening, because the 6-foot-7 left-handed twice this year seemed to be on the brink on being in the Oakland starting rotation, both in Spring Training 1 and in summer camp.

In the first week of March Puk was shut down before he was ready to make his third spring start. Orthopedic specialist Dr. Neil ElAttrache, working out of the Kerlan-Jobe Institute in Los Angeles, told the club that he’d found no structural damage in Puk’s shoulder.

Puk worked his way back, only to have what was called a mild shoulder strain force him to the sidelines in July, keeping him from being part of the A’s rotation when the season finally started up. He began throwing again on Aug. 15 and heading into last week he was on the verge of being called up as a reliever before shoulder pain cropped up again.

He will see Dr. ElAttrache again Wednesday for the surgery, the type of which manager Bob Melvin wasn’t in position to identify Friday.

“For A.J. it’s obviously been a tough road for him,” Melvin said in a video conference call. “Going back and forth, ramping up, now the shutdown. So obviously there’s something going on in there that needs to be taken care of.”

The A’s have been fortunate in that the club had Chris Bassitt to step in. Bassitt, who made 25 starts last year, has been the steadiest starting pitcher the A’s have had, with a 3-2 record, a 1.200 WHIP and a team-best 3.12 ERA entering his start in Oakland’s doubleheader in Arlington, Texas. against the Rangers.

For Puk, he won't know  until after next week's surgery just how long the recovery period will be, but it's possible his 2021 season is threatened.

Follow Athletics insider John Hickey on Twitter: @JHickey3

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