The depth in the White Sox bullpen took a hit on Friday with news that reliever Jimmy Cordero underwent Tommy John surgery. The procedure was performed Thursday by Dr. James Andrews in Gulf Breeze, Fla.
Cordero was the White Sox workhorse out of the bullpen in 2020 pitching in 30 of the team’s 60 regular season games, including a stretch beginning on August 28 when he appeared in five games in six days. His 30 games ranked second in MLB behind Royals reliever Scott Barlow. After posting a 2.75 ERA in 30 relief appearances in 2019, Cordero finished with a 6.28 ERA in 26.2 innings in 2020.
The 29-year-old went on to pitch in two of the White Sox three Wild Card games against the A’s, throwing 3.2 scoreless innings.
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Cordero was in camp earlier this spring, pitching in two spring training games. His last appearance came on March 9 when he allowed three runs in two-thirds of an inning against the Padres.
With a loaded bullpen already featuring Liam Hendriks, Garrett Crochet, Aaron Bummer, Michael Kopech and Evan Marshall among others, it might have been difficult for Cordero to crack the Opening Day roster. But if reinforcements were needed, he would have been one of the first men called on to pick up the slack.
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