Boyd to undergo Tommy John surgery

ARLINGTON -- Veteran Tigers starter Matthew Boyd will undergo season-ending Tommy John surgery after suffering an elbow injury in his most recent start against the Rangers.

Boyd tossed 15 pitches and lasted just two-thirds of an inning before being pulled from the game with left elbow discomfort.

He was later diagnosed with a partial sprain of his ulnar collateral ligament. A date for Boyd’s surgery has not yet been scheduled, but the typical recovery time for the procedure is 12 to 18 months.

“Matt is clearheaded about it,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said. “It’s disappointing for him and for us, but it’s on to the next challenge. Obviously, we need to move in a different direction in the rotation. But, it’s a terrible feeling when one of your players gets this news. Now, he’ll be resolved to being a better version of himself after surgery.”

For Detroit, it is a massive blow to an already shaky pitching staff, as Boyd leads the team in wins, games started and strikeouts so far this season.

“[Boyd has] been really healthy his whole career until just recently,” Hinch said. “He’s logged a lot of innings and had some good stretches. I’ve seen him work hard to get himself over one injury and now he’s injured again, so I feel for him.

“He’s a great guy and he’s going to work his tail off to be back and be the best he can.”

Without the southpaw atop the rotation, the Tigers will have to get creative in replacing him.

Hinch has already mentioned potentially relying on bullpen games to navigate around the injury and noted that this was an opportunity for Matt Manning to earn his keep in the Majors.

Regardless of how the Tigers reshuffle the rotation, losing Boyd is a tough pill to swallow for a team that is just 4 1/2 games out of first place in the AL Central.