Pittsburgh Pirates: Johan Oviedo to Undergo Tommy John Surgery, Miss All of 2024

One of the Pirates best starting pitchers from 2023 will now miss the entire 2024 season
Sep 3, 2023; St. Louis, Missouri, USA;  Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Johan Oviedo (24)
Sep 3, 2023; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Johan Oviedo (24) / Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports
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The Pittsburgh Pirates will now be without Johan Oviedo for the entire 2024 season due to the righty needing to undergo Tommy John surgery

Earlier in the offseason news broke that Johan Oviedo was dealing with an elbow issue, an elbow issue that the Pittsburgh Pirates feared could lead to Tommy John surgery and cost Oviedo the entire 2024 season. Well, these fears have come to fruition.

On Saturday, news broke that Oviedo will indeed undergo Tommy John surgery. With this, the righty will miss the entirety of the 2024 season.

In first full season as a starting pitcher in the majors Oviedo was a key cog for the Pirate starting rotation in 2023. Oviedo pitched 177.2 innings in 32 starts, both career highs, and pitched his first career complete game. He posted a 4.31 ERA, 4.49 FIP, 10.6% walk rate, and a 20.2% strikeout rate. He also posted a career best 2.1 WAR.

Losing Oviedo is a huge blow to the 2024 Pirates. The expectation was for him to make 30+ starts once again, while also taking a step forward as a starting pitcher. Now, Oviedo and the Pirates will be dealing with a lost season.

Oviedo losing an entire season will be detrimental to his development, as well as being detrimental to the potential success of the Pirates in 2024. The Pirates were already in dire need of starting pitching help for 2024. Now, Mitch Keller is the only starting pitcher on the team's 40-man roster who has proven to be a viable option for a MLB rotation.

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