JUPITER, Fla. -- Miami Marlins reliever Carter Capps is expected to be sidelined for an extended period because of discomfort in his right elbow, and the right-hander has scheduled a visit Monday with specialist Dr. James Andrews in Gulf Breeze, Florida, to determine whether he needs surgery.
Capps cut short a throwing session and underwent an MRI on Monday after his troublesome elbow again flared up. He said felt fine at the start of spring training, but he missed the final two months of last season because of elbow soreness. He sat out three months in 2014 for the same reason.
He avoided surgery when he saw Andrews two years ago.
"He strongly advised against surgery then, so you never know what they're going to say," Capps said Thursday. "We're just kind of in the wait-and-see stage."
Capps has already received two opinions regarding his recent tests.
"They look at the MRI and say there's some stuff there," he said. "But is it old? Is it new? You never know."
The Marlins had expected Capps to challenge incumbent A.J. Ramos for the closer's job. Last year Capps had 58 strikeouts in 31 innings, and his rate of 16.8 strikeouts per nine innings was the highest in the majors among pitchers with at least 15 innings.
"He was dominant last year," Marlins manager Don Mattingly said. "It's not a matter of his stuff. It's a matter of staying out there and being dependable and creating some consistency for the club. Obviously this is a little setback."
