By CJ Carlson
The Miami Marlins took a massive hit when their pitcher Sandy Alcantara underwent Tommy John surgery in the offseason. The expectation was that he’d miss the entire upcoming season, though there’s a possibility that he’s at least a month ahead of schedule after this latest update.
It was recently reported that Alcantara was able to play catch today. It’s the first time that he’s even attempted to throw a baseball since October. When asking about it to their manager Skip Schumaker, he said that his star player is “probably three or four weeks ahead of schedule.” Even with the extra month that he’s been able to shed from his rehab, it’s overwhelmingly likely that he doesn’t pitch for the Marlins this season. For the most part, Tommy John surgery requires at least one year worth of rehab, which would put Alcantara to be back at a minimum in October.
Alcantara had a phenomenal 2022 campaign as well, and another solid year in 2023. It’s what makes his injury that much worse for a Marlins team that’s hoping to improve moving forward. Alcantara had a 2.28 ERA and a 2.99 FIP with 228 innings pitched in 2022. The year after, he regressed a little with a 4.14 ERA, but still managed to start 28 games and be a staple of Miami’s rotation.
Miami Marlins Hoping To Fill Hole That He Leaves Behind
With Alcantara expected to be out for the long-term, the Marlins will rely upon a unique combination of talent at the position. They’re likely going to roll with Eury Perez, Braxton Garrett, Jesus Luzardo, Edward Cabrera, and Trevor Rogers for their Opening Day rotation. It was reported that they looked into acquiring other young arms throughout the offseason, though they never wound up pulling the trigger on anything.
Of course, the hope is that Alcantara can continue to progress through his rehab and return to pitching by the 2025 season. If he keeps on progressing as he is reportedly doing, then we should absolutely see him get back out there by the start of next season. It’ll take a huge change to even consider him coming back before 2024 is over.
