Ivan Nova has partially torn UCL, may need Tommy John surgery

Yankees' right-hander Ivan Nova has a partially-torn ulnar collateral ligament in his pitching elbow and will be placed on the disabled list today, according to MLB.com's Bryan Hoch. He will be examined by the Yankees' team physician, Dr. Chris Ahmad, on Monday, and will then determine whether he will undergo Tommy John surgery to fix the problem.

Nova was removed from his start against the Rays on Saturday night due to what the team called right elbow soreness, and underwent further testing last night. While surgery is not a definite outcome, it seems like the likely next-step for the 27-year old.

Nova is faced with a situation similar to that of Rays' lefty Matt Moore, who elected to undergo Tommy John after a couple weeks of consideration. Many young pitchers have had to go under the knife so far this year, including Moore, Kris Medlen and Brandon Beachy (Braves), Jarrod Parker (Athletics), Bobby Parnell (Mets), Patrick Corbin (Diamondbacks) and Jameson Taillon (Pirates).

Nova has struggled in four starts this season, posting a 2-2 record and 8.27 ERA in 20.2 innings. He is coming off a very strong season in which he went 9-6 with a 3.10 ERA in 23 appearances (20 starts), and was expected to be a key contributor to the Yankees' rotation this year.

With Nova possibly out for an extended period of time, the Yankees may have to explore the trade market in hopes of finding a fifth arm to add to their rotation of CC Sabathia, Hiroki Kuroda, Masahiro Tanaka and Michael Pineda.