Yankees Deserve Some Blame for Luis Severino Tommy John Surgery Mess

The New York Yankees' grand plans for American League domination on the back of an improved starting rotation led by Gerrit Cole, James Paxton, and Luis Severino hit a major road block when the 26-year-old Severino was recommended to undergo Tommy John Surgery, which would cost him the entire 2020 season.

Tommy John surgery for Luis Severino, Cashman says
— Brendan Kuty (@BrendanKutyNJ) February 25, 2020

Looks like some of the bad medical luck from the nightmare season that was 2019 has permeated over into 2020. No one is "at fault" for this injury, but this is not going to look great on the Yankees medical staff's annual review.

The Yankees had an inkling that Severino's arm wasn't quite right, and they sent him for two separate MRIs and a CT scan in the offseason. While all of them came back negative, it remains either incredibly poor luck or the fault of a subpar medical staff if they looked under his skin three separate times and didn't see anything even slightly wrong once.

Yankees GM Brian Cashman said that the last MRI for Luis Severino was in January. Severino had two MRIs and a CT scan after complaining of discomfort, and all tests have been negative. “It could be small and a timing issue or it could be significant,”... https://t.co/UG6UfiPGYr
— Marly Rivera (@MarlyRiveraESPN) February 20, 2020

And yes, none of those MRIs, until the fateful one that dropped on Tuesday, were of the "dye contrast" variety.

Luis Severino's partial UCL tear was discovered by a Dye contrast MRI, Brian Cashman said. Several other "normal" MRIs didn't show it previously.
— Brendan Kuty (@BrendanKutyNJ) February 25, 2020

Good job, good effort!

The Yankees lost a No. 2 starter, but baseball has lost an ascending fireballer that was poised to help a team win a championship when healthy. If he had gotten surgically repaired and properly diagnosed in November, it might've saved some of his 2021 season. Now? Not so much; it's very much in danger.

No matter what team you're a fan of, this is some rough news.