Lost amid the shocking news that Matt Harvey has a partially torn ulnar collateral ligament and might need to undergo Tommy John surgery was the news that Jeremy Hefner will officially undergo the same surgery.
Acquired by the Mets before the 2012 season, Hefner was a minor league journeyman who made his big league debut at the age of 26. He worked mostly out of the Mets' bullpen last year but wound up with a spot in the team's rotation when it was announced that Johan Santana would miss the entire 2013 season.
In 24 appearances this year, 23 of which were starts, Hefner had a 4.34 ERA and 4.47 FIP. That's below league average for a starting pitcher, but Hefner at least looked capable of holding down the back end of a rotation. There's no official date for his surgery yet, but with a typical 12-to-15 month recovery, Hefner figures to miss all of the 2014 season.
Here's that GIF of the Kirk Nieuwenhuis videobomb of an interview Hefner did with Kevin Burkhardt earlier this year.
