Garrett Richards injury update: Angels starter to miss 6-9 months
Angels starting pitcher Garrett Richards is expected to be out for six-nine months after he suffered a torn left knee patellar tendon after stumbling while covering first base for during Wednesday night’s game against the Boston Red Sox.
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Richards, 26, is 13-4 this season with a 2.61 ERA and 164 strikeouts in 168.2 innings pitched and likely would have received some consideration for the American League Cy Young.
According to Elias Sports, The Angels are 19-7 when Richards starts this season for a .731 winning percentage. That represents the best team winning percentage for any starter in the American League.
The six-nine month time frame puts his status in jeopardy for the regular season opener in 2015 if the recovery is closer to the nine month timetable and considering the severity of the injury, it won’t be surprising to see him begin the season on the disabled list.
Without Richards for the pennant push, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim will have to rely even more on veterans Jered Weaver and C.J. Wilson to maintain their 1.5 game lead over the Oakland Athletics in the AL West.
The Angels have a 75-50 record entering Thursday night’s action and have won eight of the last 10 games to overtake the A’s who have lost eight of their last 10 games.
It is a shame Richards had breakout season cut short as a result of this gruesome looking injury. Hopefully for he, the Angels and Major League Baseball, Richards will be able to make a full and complete recovery and get back on the mound for the Angels next spring.