Honeywell has a torn UCL and plans to have Tommy John surgery, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
He said he will get a second opinion, but assuming nothing changes about the diagnosis, he wants to get Tommy John surgery as soon as possible so that he can get back to game action in early 2019. Honeywell noted that he was throwing harder Thursday than he ever has before, but insisted that was not the cause of the UCL tear. He felt a pop on the first pitch he threw during the bullpen session, and ended up throwing several more pitches before leaving with the trainer. Honeywell should be dropped in all redraft leagues, and removed from big boards in leagues that have not yet drafted. He is still a top 100 prospect for dynasty leagues, as he was essentially big-league ready at the time of the injury. Nathan Eovaldi seems like a good bet to stick in the rotation for the foreseeable future, with Matt Andriese also possibly in line for more starts than he otherwise would have been. Anthony Banda, Jose De Leon and Yonny Chirinos are the Rays' top pitching prospects expected to open the year at Triple-A, and all three are close to major-league ready.