Hermsen injures elbow, will miss 2015 baseball season

Minnesota Twins minor-league pitcher and former West Delaware prep B.J. Hermsen will undergo Tommy John elbow ligament replacement surgery after injuring his arm in spring training, the Minneapolis Star-Tribune reported Wednesday.

Hermsen, 24, was a sixth-round pick of the Twins in 2008 and the organization's minor league pitcher of the year in 2012. He has fallen on hard times the past two seasons, posting a 7.34 earned run average at high-Class A Fort Myers and Double-A New Britain.

Twins farm director Brad Steil told the Star-Tribune that Hermsen's surgery has not been scheduled but will occur later this month. He will miss the entire 2015 season.

Top pitching prospect Lewis Thorpe, a 2014 member of the Cedar Rapids Kernels, also reinjured his elbow last week and could be facing Tommy John surgery as well.