GLENDALE, Ariz. — Drew Thorpe joined the Chicago White Sox organization last spring after being acquired as a key part of the trade that sent pitcher Dylan Cease to the San Diego Padres.
The right-hander spent this spring working his way back from a right elbow injury.
Thorpe hit a bump Thursday when he exited a minor-league start with discomfort in the elbow. Thorpe will undergo Tommy John surgery in the near future, the Sox announced Saturday. He’ll miss the entire season.
“Obviously, it’s super frustrating,” Thorpe said Saturday afternoon at Camelback Ranch. “It feels like I worked my ass off to get back. So it’s kind of a gut punch.
“But now it’s just another bump in the road. I know where my head is at with everything and we’ll be able to get through it and get on to next year.”
Thorpe’s setback was part of a Saturday filled with painful injury updates for the Sox. Infielder Brandon Drury suffered a fractured left thumb on Thursday. He’ll have a follow-up visit with Dr. Donald Sheridan on Monday in Scottsdale, Ariz., to determine a time frame for his return.
“Very disappointing,” manager Will Venable said of the Thorpe news. “He’s been working incredibly hard and has continued to progress, and then obviously to have this setback is tough. But I know he’ll attack this rehab like he attacked the last one and be in a good spot here in the near future.
“Another tough one (with Drury’s news). Brandon has looked amazing. Seeing him the last couple of years and knowing how good ’23 was and then ’24 being a struggle (hitting .169 with four home runs in 97 games), it really did look like the ’23 version (when he hit 26 home runs) and very much himself. That was another tough one and continue to evaluate him and see where we’re at.”
Thorpe went 3-3 with a 5.48 ERA in nine starts for the Sox last season. He began the year at Double-A Birmingham, where he went 7-1 with a 1.35 ERA in 11 starts.
He was called up to the majors on June 11 and made his big-league debut that night in Seattle. He had an impressive stretch from June 22-July 21, going 3-0 with a 1.48 ERA, 0.76 WHIP and .127 opponents average in five starts.
Thorpe went on the 15-day injured list retroactive to Aug. 1 with a right flexor strain. The team announced in September that he would undergo a season-ending surgery involving a bone spur in his right elbow.
Thorpe had been making progress this spring before Thursday.
“I didn’t know it was super serious,” Thorpe said. “It just kind of tightened up on me.”
Venable noticed Thorpe’s effective changeup as he took each step to come back.
“That obviously leads his arsenal,” Venable said. “Also just liked the way he competed in his bullpens. I haven’t seen him pitch, I haven’t been around him outside of that, so to see a little bit of the competitor and then going to the live BPs — yeah, just bummed for him, but excited when he comes out on the other side of this to be able to have him as an option.”
The pitching injuries have piled up for the Sox this spring. Ky Bush, Prelander Berroa, Juan Carela and Blake Larson are also sidelined with Tommy John surgery. Mason Adams was recently diagnosed with a flexor strain in his right elbow.
“It’s part of it,” Venable said. “It happens across the league every year and we’re just going to deal with it the best we can and that it’s part of the game.”
Thorpe will lean on teammates who have gone through the surgery.
“It’s just kind of part of the life of the pitcher in baseball at this point,” Thorpe said. “It will be good to have them to fall back on, if I’m feeling some things throughout the recovery, rehab process. That’s obviously super helpful.”
Drury had been competing for a spot on the opening-day roster. The veteran signed a minor-league deal with the Sox, which included a nonroster invitation to spring training, on Feb. 7.
The injury occurred during a drill, Venable said.
“He just collided with a runner as a first baseman,” Venable said. “Just a throw that took him up the line and just a tough break.”
Drury has been one of the top players in camp, slashing .410/.439/.821 (16-for-39) with seven doubles, three home runs and a 1.260 OPS. Drury came into Saturday ranked first in the Cactus League with 10 extra-base hits, tied for second with the seven doubles and second with 32 total bases.
“He certainly was in the mix for at-bats,” Venable said. “We’re still trying to figure out how all it all fits together with so many guys on the fringe health-wise and I think it was really going to be a game-time decision or a late decision on how all this fits together.
“Honestly, we’ve had a lot of conversations (about roster configuration in general) where you pause and say we still have some time here and there’s some health we have to get through first. It’s one of those things where we want to let guys know what’s going on and at the same time, it’s going to be right up until the end.”
