Twins' Burdi to undergo Tommy John surgery

Nick Burdi is used to providing relief, but Friday's news must have been anything but.
The Twins' No. 16 prospect has a tear of the ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in his right elbow and will undergo Tommy John surgery, the organization announced. Given the typical timetable for recovery, the procedure will sideline him for the remainder of the 2017 season and likely the start of the 2018 campaign. 

Burdi owns a 0.53 ERA and 0.76 WHIP with 20 strikeouts and four walks in 14 appearances (17 innings) with Double-A Chattanooga this season. He last pitched Sunday, when he allowed three hits over 1 1/3 scoreless frames against Biloxi. 
The 24-year-old right-hander was taken in the second round of the 2014 Draft out of Louisville and has developed a reputation for his fastball that can hit triple digits. His slider was also given a 65 grade on the 20-80 scale by MLB.com this past offseason, and those two offerings have made him a promising relief prospect in the Minnesota system, when healthy.
This is not Burdi's first run-in with injury issues, however. He made only three appearances with Chattanooga in 2016 before a bone bruise on his right humerus knocked him out for the season. He's only pitched 104 innings over his four seasons in the Minors and has struck out 142 batters in that span.