Wrist surgery will end Slowey's year

Ted S. Warren, Associated Press

Kevin Slowey

Doctors expect a four-month recovery period for the righthanded starter.

By JOE CHRISTENSEN, Star Tribune

Last update: July 28, 2009 - 7:23 AM

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The list of Twins needs heading into Friday's non-waiver trade deadline grew Monday, when they learned that starting pitcher Kevin Slowey will undergo season-ending surgery on his right wrist.

The Twins were focusing their trade efforts primarily on relievers and middle infielders, though even before getting the Slowey news, they inquired about Toronto's Roy Halladay and Seattle's Jarrod Washburn.

Halladay did not include the Twins on his list of teams for which he would waive his no-trade clause, according to a person familiar with the talks. And though the Twins came close to a deal for Washburn last August, they aren't optimistic this time.

The Slowey injury actually affects the Twins on several fronts because they no longer have an extra starting pitcher to use as a trade chip. While several Twins insiders view Pittsburgh second baseman Freddy Sanchez as a good fit, they have to hope the Pirates would take prospects and not demand a big-league starter.

General Manager Bill Smith would not specify how Slowey's injury was affecting the trade talks, saying only, "We're trying to make the club better any way we can."

Manager Ron Gardenhire deflected trade questions to the front office but acknowledged that he's concerned.

"It's a tough break," Gardenhire said of Slowey's injury. "Our depth is not where we want it to be anyway, and now there's a little bit more of it gone."

Rookie Anthony Swarzak is now entrenched in a rotation that includes Glen Perkins, Scott Baker, Francisco Liriano and Nick Blackburn. Perkins, for one, has mentioned shoulder concerns, and if the Twins need another starter, their best options reside in their bullpen, with R.A. Dickey, Bobby Keppel and Brian Duensing.

Slowey, 25, went 10-3 with a 4.86 ERA this season and has been on the disabled list since July 4. He had been trying to rehab the injury but had another setback Friday.

Though no date had been set, Slowey planned to have a Baltimore specialist, Dr. Thomas Graham, perform the surgery, with the recovery time taking up to four months.

"I think the most important thing for me is to get ready for next year now," Slowey said.

Slowey originally sustained his injury Sept. 25 against the White Sox, when he was hit on the wrist by a line drive from Juan Uribe. Slowey said doctors told him there had been a bone chip in the wrist that became embedded in the cartilage around the wrist after the line drive.

Dr. Graham gave Slowey a cortisone shot last fall, and Slowey said the injury did not affect his pitching until his last few starts before landing on the DL. On Friday, Slowey knew something wasn't right when "I got out to 90 feet, and just the combination of the pain and the fact I couldn't make the ball do what I wanted to do, even in throwing and playing catch," he said.

Gardenhire said Slowey's injury is a blow "because he's throwing the ball very, very well for us. But on the flip side, we finally know exactly what we're going to do here, and that's very important. It's a young arm with a very good future, and we want to make sure we don't do anything silly here."

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