San Diego Padres concerned Josh Johnson might need Tommy John surgery

Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

San Diego, CA- Padre fans and the Padres themselves hoped to see Josh Johnson pitch for the Padres at some point this season despite his flexor strain in his right forearm to begin the season. Johnson was only expected to miss at least the first month of the season, but now that injury appears to be much worse as Yahoo! Sports’ Jeff Passan is reporting that Johnson may need Tommy John Surgery as he is scheduled to meet with Dr. James Andrews next week. 

According to Yahoo! Sports’ Jeff Passan,

"San Diego Padres starter Josh Johnson’s injured elbow isn’t getting any better, and the organization is increasingly concerned he will need Tommy John surgery, the latest blow in his injury-plagued career, club sources told Yahoo Sports."

If Johnson does undergo Tommy John surgery, it will be the second Tommy John surgery in Johnson’s career and his second elbow surgery within the past 12 months. Johnson previously had elbow surgery to remove bone spurs this past off-season before signing with the Padres.

Johnson has always had the potential to be one of the games best pitchers and for a period of time he was, as he lead the National League in ERA with a 2.30 ERA in 2010 and was a two-time All-Star for the Marlins from 2009-2010. Unfortunately Johnson has been unable to stay healthy his entire career and has suffered a wide range of injuries since 2010.

The Padres were hoping to just get a productive and healthy Josh Johnson when they signed him to a one-year, $8 million deal this past off-season. With the potential for him to return to his former all-star form and for a period of time it seemed like all signs were pointing towards that, as Johnson looked excellent in Spring Training and appeared ready to begin the season. Until he was forced to begin the season on the disabled list with a flexor strain in his right forearm.