Dahl undergoes right shoulder surgery

September 30th, 2020

DENVER -- Rockies outfielder underwent a cleanup surgery Tuesday on his ailing right shoulder, and he said he will begin rehab immediately and should be ready for Spring Training 2021.

Dahl, who will be heading into his age-27 season, had been dealing with shoulder pain since his throwing program began in January. He tried to play through it but suffered to a .183 batting average and no home runs in 24 games, after appearing in his first All-Star Game in 2019.

Dahl also missed 22 games in August and September with an oblique injury. He underwent a shoulder MRI that did not reveal the full extent of the damage and took a cortisone shot in the shoulder while nursing the oblique. However, continued shoulder pain limited him to five games after his return.

“I’m very happy and relieved,” Dahl said. “It’s nice to know what was going on in there, get to the bottom of it, get it cleaned up and just get ready to attack this offseason. I’ll rehab and be ready to go for Spring Training. I have a lot to prove.

“I can start rehab tomorrow.”

Dr. Jeffrey Dugas of the Andrews Sports Medicine & Orthopedic Center in Birmingham, Ala., Dahl’s hometown, performed the procedure. It required repairing fraying in the labrum, fixing a small area of the rotator cuff, and removing a bone spur and bursa sac -- which were causing the impingement that created the pain, Dahl said.