Jarrod Parker to undergo second Tommy John surgery

Athletics' right-hander Jarrod Parker will undergo his second Tommy John surgery next Tuesday, according to a baseball source with knowledge of the situation. Dr. James Andrews, who saw Parker today and determined that the surgery would be needed, will do the procedure next week.

Parker, 25, previously underwent Tommy John surgery in October 2009, when he was a member of the Diamondbacks' organization. He missed the entire 2010 season before returning to pitch in 2011 for Double-A Mobile and ultimately being shipped to Oakland in an offseason trade. He has pitched well for the A's over the last two seasons, posting a 25-16 record and 3.73 ERA in 61 starts.

With Parker out for the entire 2014 season, the A's rotation will suffer a substantial loss of a front-end starter. A.J. Griffin is also reportedly expected to miss the first month of the season, but Oakland can rely on Scott Kazmir, Sonny Gray, Dan Straily and Tommy Milone to man the first four spots in their rotation. Assistant GM David Forst told reporters that the team was unlikely to pursue external options for their rotation, so the team will probably look at internal options like Drew Pomeranz and Josh Lindblom, who were both acquired in offseason trades.

Parker is the latest of many young pitchers to be sent under the knife this offseason, joining Luke Hochevar (Royals), Ross Stripling (Dodgers) and Cory Luebke (Padres). A few other key pitchers (Kris Medlen, Brandon Beachy and Patrick Corbin) could also be joining that list in the near future after important doctor's appointments on Monday.