Hart suffers injury, will miss rest of 2014 season

Junior starter Kyle Hart will undergo Tommy John surgery and miss the remainder of the 2014 season, according to an IU news release.

“This is a tough break for Kyle,” IU Coach Tracy Smith said in the release. “But surgery is the best option for him right now.”

Hart came into the season as the No. 2 starter and was named Big Ten Pitcher of the Week in back-to-back occasions in March. He had a 3-1 record with a 2.29 ERA and gave up just three earned runs in March with a total of 28.1 innings pitched.

The injury to his arm occurred March 30 against Ohio State. Hart had thrown four innings in his start and walked out to the mound for the fifth inning. After throwing a few warm-up pitches, it was obvious Hart was experiencing discomfort in his left forearm. The coaching and training staff surrounded him, and Hart left the game. The official diagnosis at the time was a forearm strain.

It came out later Hart had torn his ulnar collateral ligament and would be evaluated further in the weeks to come.

“I will have surgery to repair the torn UCL in my elbow. Can’t wait to support my teammates the rest of the year. I’ll be back. #ForTheBoys,” Hart said in a tweet Monday.

Smith said in the release that Hart is expected to make a full recovery and will be ready for the 2015 season.

This latest injury means IU has lost their No. 2 starter and their closer on the pitching staff. On March 5 against Xavier, senior closer Ryan Halstead — who has the record for most saves in IU history — tore his ACL, sidelining him for the remainder of the season.

In the weeks since Hart’s injury, sophomore Christian Morris has cemented himself as the team’s No. 2 starter. The issue of who will replace Morris as the No. 3 starter is still in flux.

Sophomore Will Coursen-Carr got the start Sunday but struggled. He had control issues and only threw one inning against Morehead State before Smith pulled him.

After Coursen-Carr and sophomore Evan Bell struggled Sunday, junior Luke Harrison came in and righted the ship by throwing 4.1 innings.

Harrison looks to be the next in line to get an opportunity as the No. 3 starter when Michigan State comes to Bloomington Friday.

Evan Hoopfer