Angels Pitcher Suffered Significant Elbow Injury While Facing Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani

Maren Angus-Coombs | Nov 4, 2024

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

One pitch to a former teammate was all Patrick Sandoval needed to end his 2024 season.

The Los Angeles Angels starter tore the UCL in his pitching elbow and needed season-ending surgery after getting hurt on a pitch to former teammate Shohei Ohtani.

In an interview on The Locker Room with AJ Ramos, Patrick Sandoval revealed that he injured his elbow while facing Shohei Ohtani but continued to pitch despite the discomfort.

“I ripped a slider, one of the nastier ones I’ve thrown all year," Sanodval said. "I was like, 'Oh no.' I felt something in my elbow — 3-2 (count) , we called fastball up… Threw it as hard as I could and it went 88 or 89. Worst pain I’ve ever felt in my life.”

In an interview with The Locker Room with AJ Ramos, Patrick Sandoval admits to hurting his elbow against Shohei Ohtani but pitching through it:

“I ripped a slider, one of the nastier ones I’ve thrown all year… I was like oh no. I felt something in my elbow”

“3-2, we called… pic.twitter.com/TMKwujdvJe

— Jake (@D1SCHER) October 24, 2024

The 27-year-old served as the Angels' Opening Day starter, finishing the season with a record of 2-8 and a 5.08 ERA over 16 appearances.

“It sucks, there’s no other way to put it,” Sandoval said at the time of his injury in June. “I love being out there on the field, I love playing. It’s just unfortunate.”

Sandoval underwent Tommy John surgery for the first of his career. Sandoval's injury leaves his future with the Angels uncertain because he won't be able to pitch in 2025. He is under team control until the end of the 2026 season, but the team could choose to non-tender him, making him a free agent after this season.

“You never anticipate having an injury,” Sandoval said. “But I’m kind of aware of how common it is in the game. Especially at this level and how hard guys throw.”

Entering last season, Sandoval seemed poised to become a rising star for the Angels. He had just finished the 2022 season with a 2.91 ERA and impressed in two starts for Team Mexico during the World Baseball Classic.

However, the season did not go as expected. His walk rate increased significantly, while his strikeouts saw a noticeable decline.

"It is tough for everyone, especially him because he was starting to really, really compete and then something like this happened,” manager Ron Washington said in June. “You can't control it. But now we know he's got to get it fixed. We just got to continue to move on. I just told him the best of luck, and that I love him. There’s not much more I can say."