Washington Nationals right-handed reliever Chad Cordero was ruled out for the rest of the season yesterday after an enhanced X-ray revealed that the labrum in his right shoulder is torn. He will have surgery to repair it and could miss a significant portion of next season, as well.
"It's sad because we have missed him so bad this first half," Manny Acta told reporters in Miami, where the Nationals played last night. "We were looking forward to him coming back in the se-cond half so he could stabilize our bullpen and make it better, but it's just one more injury for us."
Cordero, 26, was limited to six games this season because of right shoulder pain and a torn right lat muscle. He has been in Viera, Fla., rehabilitating his shoulder and lat for the last three weeks, but slow progress prompted the team to seek an arthrogram--an x-ray involving dye to enhance the image--on Cordero's shoulder.
Renowned orthopedist Lewis Yocum will perform the surgery, which has yet to be scheduled. The expected length of Cordero's recovery won't be known until the surgery, when the severity of the tear is determined. Such injuries normally require 12 to 18 months of recovery time.
Cordero has 128 saves and a 2.78 ERA since arriving in the big leagues in 2003. He had no record and a 2.08 ERA in 4 innings in 2008. He avoided salary arbitration last offseason by signing a one-year, $6.2 million deal in January, and he is eligible for arbitration again this offseason.
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