Seattle Mariners reliever George Sherrill will undergo elbow surgery in May and will most likely miss the entire 2012 MLB season after reunited with the M’s in the offseason on a minor deal. The last time he pitched this year was on Opening Day, and he has been dealing with injuries his entire career. In fact, this latest setback likely dates back to last year.
For now, the LOOGY role will likely be taken by Lucas Luetke and Charlie Furbush, who was the young pitcher from the Doug Fister deal with the Detroit Tigers. A time table for Sherrill’s injury will be released after the surgery, and he was placed on the 15-day DL back in mid-April due to a strained flexor bundle in his left, throwing elbow.
From 2006-2009 while with the Seattle Mariners and Baltimore Orioles (with a few games in Boston), George Sherrill was one of the better relievers in the game. He was worth 1.4 WAR in 2009 and had a 1.70 ERA, but he was constantly shuffled around after getting traded to Boston in mid-2o09. He spent the 2010 season with the Los Angeles Dodgers and was horrible in what was easily the worst season of his career.
Last year, Sherrill redeemed himself in 36 innings with the Atlanta Braves and finished the short year with a solid 0.5 WAR in a quality season. He didn’t get to pitch much last year, but he made his impact felt in that time. Sherrill struck out 9.5 batters per nine innings and walked three for a 3.08 FIP that matched his 3.08 xFIP and was near his 3.00 ERA.
Before the season, ZiPS projected a 4.09 ERA from George Sherrill in 33 innings of work, and the Mariners can only hope that their best left-hander doesn’t miss the year. He is a quality reliever overall and cuts into this bullpen’s depth, and it makes trading closer Brandon League almost impossible at this stage.
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