The San Francisco Giants got devastating news on their starting rotation during their series against the Cincinnati Reds. Giants manager Tony Vitello told Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area that Carson Whisenhunt has a torn UCL in his left elbow, with surgery recommended to fix the tear.
That is unfortunate news for both the Giants and Whisenhunt. Surgery is likely to not only knock him out for the 2026 season, but almost all of 2027 as well.
Whisenhunt finishes the year with eight starts for San Francisco. He went 3-4 with a 6.49 ERA across 34.2 innings.
He also made 18 appearances, 17 starts, with Triple-A Sacramento. There, he had a 4.15 ERA and a 24.9% strikeout rate over 82.1 innings.
What the Carson Whisenhunt News Means for the Giants
GettyCarson Whisenhunt suffered a UCL tear in his start against the Cincinnati Reds. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
The Giants immediately put Carson Whisenhunt on the 15-day injured list. The move was so they could call up Spencer Bivens to provide some coverage for the bullpen, which had to get 20 outs in a 5-0 win over the Reds.
With the diagnosis of a torn UCL and recommendation of surgery, Whisenhunt will likely seek a second opinion before deciding his next steps. The two leading surgeons who perform Tommy John are Dr. Neal ElAttrache and Dr. Keith Meister.
It’s unclear if Whisenhunt needs the full Tommy John surgery or if he’ll undergo UCL revision surgery with an internal brace. The former is guaranteed to keep him out until the 2028 season at the earliest; the latter might allow him to return in the final month of 2027.
Either way, the Giants will be without one of their young starters for the foreseeable future. Whisenhunt could be the third Giants starting pitcher to undergo the knife this season, with Hayden Birdsong and Trevor McDonald having Tommy John surgery.
Perhaps the more concerning part is Whisenhunt’s struggles. In 13 MLB starts, he has a 5.90 ERA with a 15.8% strikeout rate and a 12.4% walk rate. It doesn’t help that he’ll miss a full year’s worth of reps to work on his command.
Whisenhunt will collect a full year of service time rehabbing from surgery. He’ll still have five more seasons of club control afterward, as well as two minor league options.
Injuries Piling Up for Giants Rotation
GettyThe Giants lost Carson Whisenhunt and Adrian Houser to injury on back-to-back nights. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)
While Carson Whisenhunt weighs the biggest decision of his career, the Giants still have 30 games left in the season. Coupled with Adrian Houser leaving the next game due to injury, the club is down two starting pitchers for likely the rest of the season.
The Giants have Logan Webb, Landen Roupp, and Blade Tidwell as their only healthy starters right now. With two holes to fill in their rotation, the Giants will have to dig deep into their farm system to finish out the season.
Matt Wilkinson is one option, but he’d have to replace an injured player, as he was optioned on August 24. That can be done as the corresponding move to Houser going on the 15-day injured list. The big left-hander lines up for their opening on August 29, which is Whisenhunt’s old spot.
Their ptjer rotation options in Triple-A include Joe Whitman, Cesar Perdomo, Seth Lonsway, and John Michael Bertrand.
Giants Get Devastating Carson Whisenhunt Injury News During Reds Series