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The Frankie Montas trade for the New York Yankees has not played out as well as expected. Even GM Brian Cashman admitted it "hasn’t worked out at all," as the right-hander started just eight games after coming over from the Oakland Athletics, pitching to a 6.35 ERA in those outings.
Now, Montas is scheduled to undergo shoulder surgery on Tuesday that could have him out for the entirety of this upcoming campaign. The Yankees don’t truly know what’s been plaguing Montas’ shoulder, which they knew was an issue when they traded for him last summer. But the inflammation hasn’t gone away, and after trying to ramp up for spring training, Montas had to be shut down.
Sports medicine surgeon Dr. James B. Carr II, with the Hospital for Special Surgery, specializes in shoulder ailments, and he gave some insight to Fox News Digital Monday about what Montas and the Yankees could expect once the arthroscopic procedure begins.
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New York's Frankie Montas in action against the Tampa Bay Rays at Yankee Stadium on Sept. 9, 2022, in the Bronx. (Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)
"In terms of what you’re looking for, a lot of times you have a pretty good idea based off the MRI," Carr explained. "The MRI’s very good nowadays, we get a good sense of where the inflammation is. You get a sense a lot of times if there’s any fraying of tissue or flap of tissue that may be impinging or causing pain. You get a good sense if there’s a bone spur that may be causing pain, causing an impingement that may be causing that inflammation. Sometimes you get in there and see something additional like a flap of tissue that you didn’t see on the MRI. Sometimes you get in there and see some very red, inflamed bursitis-type tissue that you can clean out and take care of the inflammation that way.
"My guess is they’re probably looking for the inflamed bursitis tissue, if that’s where the inflammation is. Or they’re looking for something inside the joint or outside the joint that may be generating that inflammation, whether it’s a flap of tissue or a bone spur and addressing it accordingly."
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Basically, a variety of things could be found when doctors try to pinpoint the pain for Montas. Because of that, doctors can come out of the procedure with good or bad news.
"Best case scenario is you get in there and all of the anatomic structures are intact," Carr said. "So the cartilage looks good, the labrum looks good, the rotator cuff looks good. There may be a little bit of inflamed tissue that you clean up, but best case scenario would be one where you do not have to repair a structure. You’re doing more of what we call a debridement, which is really the classic clean-up procedure. If you’re just cleaning up, then that has a much shorter timeline of recovery because you’re not waiting for structures to heal from a repair standpoint."
Frankie Montas of the New York Yankees pitches against the Astros in the American League Championship Series at Minute Maid Park on Oct. 19, 2022, in Houston, Texas. (Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)
Carr added that a six-month recovery is the likely timeline there for Montas, which would have him back somewhere near the end of August.
The worst case scenario, though, is why manager Aaron Boone, Cashman and the rest of the Yankees’ brass fear the entire season could be missed.
"Worst case scenario is if you get in there and realize that there’s a structure that’s torn or something that you need to repair, whether it’s the capsule or the labrum," Carr said. "That’s a more serious issue that really takes more of a nine- to 12-month recovery process. It could put his season in jeopardy."
The reason recovery requires that timeline is because the shoulder needs to be strengthened in multiple areas surrounding it. As Carr puts it: "Pretty much throwing a ball overhand as a starting pitcher does is probably the most unnatural position you can place your shoulder in."
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Doing so with mid-90s sinkers and high-80s sliders makes it that much more important to get strength in the shoulder.
The Yankees traded lefties JP Sears and Ken Waldichuk, right-handed, flame-throwing prospect Luis Medina and second baseman Cooper Bowman for Montas and reliever Lou Trivino prior to the MLB trade deadline last season.
Waldichuk and Sears have a chance to make the A’s Opening Day roster on the rotation, while Medina is on the cusp of being called up to the bigs. So the trade could be one-sided depending on how these young hurlers perform with Oakland.
New York Yankees starting pitcher Frankie Montas leaves the Brewers game on Sept. 16, 2022, at American Family Field in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Larry Radloff/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
For now, the Yankees definitely seem to be on the losing side of it, as Montas awaits to hear what has been plaguing him since last season.
With Montas expected to miss quite a while either way, the Yankees are expected to lean on internal options like Domingo German and Clarke Schmidt this season.
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Montas is also set to be a free agent after this year.