Brad Peacock undergoes hip surgery; will likely miss Spring Training

Brad Peacock was expected to compete for a spot in the Houston Astros starting rotation next spring, but the right-hander will likely miss Spring Training after undergoing surgery on his right hip. Peacock had arthroscopic surgery to repair a torn labrum and remove bone spurs earlier this month, according to Evan Drellich of the Houston Chronicle.

Typical rehab from the procedure – which is fairly routine –  is about four months, which would bring him to early February. He won’t even be able to start playing catch until then, leaving some questions about when he’ll be ready to actually pitch from a mound.

Peacock threw a career-high 131.1 IP this past season, making 28 appearances (including 24 starts). He finished the season 4-9 with a 4.72 ERA and 1.565 WHIP.

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The 26 year old (he’ll turn 27 in early February) has made just 49 appearances (40 starts) in his big league career dating back to 2011. He’s been traded twice – first from the Washington Nationals to the Oakland A’s (when Washington acquired Gio Gonzalez) and then from the A’s to the Astros (when the A’s acquired Jed Lowrie) – in that stretch but has spent the bulk of his time bouncing between the majors and Triple-A. He’s 11-15 in his career, with a 4.68 ERA and 1.471 WHIP in 227.0 IP.

Houston figures to head into the 2015 season with a rotation fronted by Scott Feldman, Dallas Keuchel, Collin McHugh, and Brett Oberholtzer. Peacock would have been in the mix for the last spot to begin the season but his injury could pave the way for Mike Foltynewicz, Nick Tropeano, or Alex White to win that last turn in the rotation. Of course, this is all before we truly reach the offseason. Houston is expected to have money to spend this winter and could be an active participant on the free agent market. They likely won’t be pursuing the top-tiered pitchers that will be available but it won’t come as a surprise to see the team pursue at least one more seasoned arm to help bolster their rotation.