Friday 5th September 2008

Hill to have surgery

Washington Nationals righthander Shawn Hill will have arthroscopic surgery on his pitching elbow, the team announced on Thursday.

The surgery will be performed on Friday by noted orthopedic surgeon Dr James Andrews.

Hill, 27, has been on the disabled list since June 25 with a strained right forearm. He went 1-5 with a 5.83 ERA in 12 starts this season.

Hill has been plagued by injuries throughout his young career. He missed the 2005 season after having "Tommy John" surgery and missed a large part of 2006 due to soreness in his right elbow. He also was limited to 16 starts last season because of shoulder and forearm injuries.

A sixth-round pick by the Washington-Montreal franchise in 2000, Hill is 7-15 with a 4.93 ERA in 37 starts.