BOSTON — Joel Hanrahan’s season is officially over.
Hanrahan confirmed on Saturday that he will undergo season-ending surgery to repair his torn flexor muscle tendon. Surgery on the flexor tendon typically carries a six- to nine-month recovery period, according to the reliever, although there’s no official timetable for his return.
Hanrahan, who was transferred to the 60-day disabled list on Thursday, sought a second opinion from Dr. James Andrews, one of the country’s leading orthopedic surgeons. Andrews confirmed that Hanrahan’s flexor muscle is torn off the bone, which is what doctors in Boston originally thought.
Once Hanrahan goes in for surgery, which is expected to be sometime next week, it will be determined whether he’ll have surgery on just the tendon or if he’ll need to undergo Tommy John surgery. Tommy John would obviously make for a longer recovery period.
Although the news isn’t all that surprising given this week’s developments, it’s certainly disappointing for Hanrahan. The 31-year-old only appeared in nine games with the Red Sox after being acquired from the Pirates during the offseason, and now his focus is on getting ready for 2014.
“The way I look at it is surgery, the guys who are doing it these days and the programs that they have, surgery is kind of like putting a Band-Aid on something,” Hanrahan said. “ … They’re so good at their job — kind of like we are – it kind of takes a lot of the worry out of everything. [I’ll] stick with the programs they have and try to get healthy for next year.”
It’s unclear if Hanrahan will wear a Red Sox uniform when he returns to the mound. He’s slated to become a free agent after this season, which makes the injury even more poorly timed, and the Sox will have to determine whether they want to roll the dice despite his disappointing campaign.
“Hopefully I’ll get another chance here maybe and I want to try to show the fans here what kind of pitcher I really am,” Hanrahan said. “This year has kind of been a wash. Now it’s definitely a wash. We’ll see where it takes me from there.”
Hanrahan ends his season with a 0-1 record and 9.82 ERA in nine appearances.
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