Tanner Houck to Undergo Tommy John Surgery, Will Miss 2025 and 2026 Seasons

[Brandon Glick]

Nothing in baseball is guaranteed.

Tanner Houck, fresh off a brilliant 2024 campaign where he earned his first All-Star nod and pitched to a 3.12 ERA in 178 2/3 innings, was supposed to be the No. 2 to Garrett Crochet this season.

Instead, he was miserable in limited action, surrendering a hideous 8.04 ERA in 43 2/3 innings. He was originally placed on the injured list back on May 12 with a strained forearm flexor, and numerous setbacks have kept him from appearing in Boston since.

Now, according to Chris Cotillo, Houck will undergo Tommy John surgery in short order. The procedure and subsequent recovery will likely keep him out through the end of the 2026 season.

Houck, 29, is due to be a free agent after the 2027 season. Given his troubling injury diagnosis and the exceedingly-high likelihood of a league-wide lockout in 2027, it's possible we've seen the last of Houck in a Red Sox uniform.

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[a700hitter]

It’s time for Breslow to sign Houck to an extension.😆

[moonslav59]

I guess that explains the implosion. It might have helped, if he had the surgery in May, but such is life.

2027, here we come!

[vegasbob]

Why would this be a surprise ( and disappointment) to anyone except the Sox medical staff ?  Pitching arm flexor problems almost inevitably wind up this way.  Rest and low intensity rehab does not cure it unless you never plan to pitch again, which is likely for Tanner Houck.

[mvp 78]

On 8/2/2025 at 2:38 PM, moonslav59 said:

I guess that explains the implosion. It might have helped, if he had the surgery in May, but such is life.

2027, here we come!

The least surprising outcome of this season IMO. 

[moonslav59]

10 minutes ago, mvp 78 said:

The least surprising outcome of this season IMO. 

This always makes me wonder if the problem actually occurred, when he showed a sharp decline in performance back in 2024, but it was not identified by our crack(head) medical staff for over a year.

[mvp 78]

Just now, moonslav59 said:

This always makes me wonder if the problem actually occurred, when he showed a sharp decline in performance back in 2024, but it was not identified by our crack(head) medical staff for over a year.

IDK, but it was clear there was something really wrong with him at the start of the season. I hate when teams have their guys pitch through it. I know surgery isn't always a great option, but when it ends up in TJS anyway... Well, DUH!

[Hitch]

I was listening to a podcast way back with a medical guy that said you'd be surprised how often it isn't obvious they should have the surgery. As in most guys will have small tears in there and carry on pitching just fine without the surgery. It seemed a lot more complicated a decision than perhaps we've been led to believe. 

Pity Jackson wasn't still around (just for the Yanks implosion if nothing else), would be good to get more information on this whole thing. 

[Bellhorn04]

In spite of the bad news it was kind of cool to see Houck, and Mayer, in the dugout last night.   

[cp176]

On 8/2/2025 at 4:41 PM, vegasbob said:

Why would this be a surprise ( and disappointment) to anyone except the Sox medical staff ?  Pitching arm flexor problems almost inevitably wind up this way.  Rest and low intensity rehab does not cure it unless you never plan to pitch again, which is likely for Tanner Houck.

I suspect that he’ll be back and pitch better than ever with a rebuilt arm.

[Kimmi]

On 8/5/2025 at 9:07 AM, Hitch said:

I was listening to a podcast way back with a medical guy that said you'd be surprised how often it isn't obvious they should have the surgery. As in most guys will have small tears in there and carry on pitching just fine without the surgery. It seemed a lot more complicated a decision than perhaps we've been led to believe. 

Pity Jackson wasn't still around (just for the Yanks implosion if nothing else), would be good to get more information on this whole thing. 

I'm sure it's a very complicated decision.  Surgery is invasive.  If I'm a pitcher (even if I'm not), I think I'd opt for non-surgical treatments first to avoid surgery if possible.  Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.  The problem is that if it doesn't work, there are weeks or months of "wasted" time for the player who then has to go through the surgery anyway.

At any rate, I wish Houck a speedy and successful recovery.