Yankees' Britton Suffers Setback in Rehab From Elbow Surgery

New York Yankees reliever Zack Britton felt soreness in his left elbow after facing hitters, impacting his rehab assignment and return from the injured list

When Zack Britton threw a simulated game on Saturday, facing hitters for the first time since elbow surgery this spring, the reliever was "really encouraged" by how his arm felt. 

A few days later, the start of Britton's rehab assignment is in jeopardy due to a bit of a setback.

Britton is feeling soreness in his left arm, Yankees manager Aaron Boone revealed on Monday afternoon. The left-hander will see a doctor and his scheduled appearance with the Double-A Somerset Patriots on Wednesday could be postponed. 

"I think it's general soreness," Boone said before Monday's loss to the Texas Rangers. "Think it could just be related to the normal ramp up of going into a sim game now and facing hitters obviously so we'll see where we're at. Hopefully, it's just something that we push off a couple days."

Zack Britton is dealing with some "general soreness" after his sim game, Aaron Boone says. His rehab assignment on Wednesday could be pushed back. Britton is schedule to see a doctor in the meantime.

— Max Goodman (@MaxTGoodman) May 17, 2021

Britton underwent surgery in March to remove a bone chip in his left elbow, resulting in a trip to the 60-day injured list. New York has been targeting the end of May for Britton's return to the bullpen ever since the procedure. 

As of last week, Britton had five outings scheduled in the minor leagues going forward. It's unclear as of Monday night whether or not that timetable will need to be adjusted with this added wrinkle to the southpaw's recovery. 

New York has been banged up of late. While sidearmer Darren O'Day is the only other reliever on the injured list, a group including Giancarlo Stanton, Aaron Hicks and Gleyber Torres are all also sidelined.

MORE:

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• Boone, Yankees Hope to Have Stanton Back Before End of Month
• Yankees to 'Prioritize' Left-Handed Bats at Trade Deadline

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