Oakland Athletics Young Pitcher Dealing with Elbow Concerns

Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Mason Miller has been diagnosed with a UCL sprain and it's unknown when he will return.

The Oakland Athletics are already the worst team in baseball (9-34 entering play on Tuesday) and now the best part of watching them this year is going to be sidelined for a significant amount of time.

Top A's pitching prospect Mason Miller, who was already on the injured list with elbow concerns, officially has been diagnosed with a UCL sprain.

Martin Gallegos of MLB.com put the information out on Twitter:

Mason Miller has been diagnosed with a mild UCL sprain after a visit with Dr. Keith Meister. He will resume throwing when asymptomatic and A’s are hopeful he will pitch again this season.

Mason Miller has been diagnosed with a mild UCL sprain after a visit with Dr. Keith Meister. He will resume throwing when asymptomatic and A’s are hopeful he will pitch again this season.

— Martín Gallegos (@MartinJGallegos) May 16, 2023

While that doesn't read "Tommy John surgery" or anything, it's certainly not great news. When you hear "hopeful he will pitch again," it leads you to believe that the absence will be lengthy.

Miller was off to a great and exciting start for the A's before getting injured.

He made his debut in mid-April and has pitched to a 3.38 ERA in 21.1 innings. He has struck out 22 batters in those 21.1 innings and recently threw seven no-hit innings against the Seattle Mariners.

He went six innings and allowed just one run against the Kansas City Royals in his final start. He also had five strikeouts.

He was a third-round pick of the Athletics back in the 2021 draft out of Gardner-Webb. 

The Athletics will continue a series on Tuesday against the Arizona Diamondbacks. First pitch is scheduled for 9:40 p.m. ET.

We spoke today with Adrian Hernandez of 'The Sporting Tribune,' who talked with more about the A's possible relocation to Las Vegas. You can listen to that here.

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