Cardinals SS Rafael Furcal to have Tommy John surgery

Rafael Furcal

Cardinals shortstop Rafael Furcal will have Tommy John surgery on his right elbow next week, the team announced Thursday.

The 35-year-old injured the elbow late last season and chose rehab over surgery in the offseason. He suffered a setback at spring training and was shut down early this week.

“It’s very disappointing,” Furcal said. “I worked so hard in the offseason to get everything straight, working hard with the doctors, the training team, we did anything we could do to get ready for spring training, ready for the season. It’s tough for me to say that I’m going to lose the whole year. For me, I feel like I don’t know where my mind is right now. I can’t describe it. It’s a tough situation for me.”

Furcal was a National League All-Star last season, hitting .264/.325/.346/.671 in 121 games.

Pete Kozma and Ronny Cedeno will compete for the opening at short.

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