East Carolina righthanded pitcher Jeff Hoffman, the No. 2 college prospect for the upcoming Major League Baseball draft, was working toward solidifying his case as a number one overall pick candidate this spring, and recently had been opening up a lot of eyes. Now, his 2014 season is over. As of Tuesday, Hoffman has been shut down for the remainder of the college baseball season, and has opted to have Tommy John surgery after consulting with Dr. James Andrews on Monday.
After being shut down a couple weeks ago for what was believed to be minor elbow swelling, it was discovered this week the ECU righty has a small tear in his right elbow and will indeed require surgery.
The surgery is scheduled for next week with Dr. Andrews. Early indications show that Hoffman is still potentially being considered by teams (who already have knowledge of the situation) in the first 5-10 picks. But, it's also too early to speculate just how this may impact his stock.
The news is a major setback for the righty. We saw him at a recent performance at Rice University, where he touched 98 in the eighth inning, and showcased a plus curveball and changeup. Overall, Hoffman's junior campaign ends with a 2.94 ERA in 67 1/3 innings, along with 72 strikeouts and 20 walks.