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Minnesota Twins closer Joe Nathan will
miss the 2010 season because of a right elbow injury that will
require surgery.

      Nathan, who leads the major leagues with 246 saves since 2004,
made the decision after playing catch with Twins pitching coach
Rick Anderson for 10 minutes on Sunday.

      "It didn't go like we hoped," Nathan said. "We knew it was a
long shot, but I think this will clear my head. There definitely
was no gray area. It was definitely on the dark side. We know now
that we're going to need to go in and have some surgery done and
get this thing taken care of."


      Nathan hopes to have Tommy John surgery within two weeks to
repair the torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow. He
was injured on March 6 during a 20-pitch outing in a spring
training game against the Boston Red Sox.

      The 35-year-old right-hander signed a $47 million contract two
years ago that guarantees him $11.25 million both this season and
next. The Twins have a $12.5 million option for 2012, with a $2
million buyout.

      Nathan has set his sights on returning at the start of the 2011
season.


      "I'm very confident," he said. "I've talked to the doctors.
The percentages of coming back are very good. You never want to say
100 percent, but it's pretty close to being 100 percent of the
time."

      Nathan went 2-2 with a 2.10 ERA and a career-best 47 saves last
season.


      The in-house relievers likely to replace Nathan include Jon
Rauch, who has 26 big league saves, the most of any Twins pitcher
besides Nathan. Other possible candidates are Matt Guerrier, Jesse
Crain, Jose Mijares and Pat Neshek.

      Since hurting the elbow two weeks ago, Nathan had tried
strengthening the muscles around the joint, hoping to pitch through
the injury. But the throwing session confirmed his worst-case
scenario.

      "It started out well," Nathan said. "Everything felt good at
the beginning. I didn't want to go super intense but enough to
where it was along the lines of playing a normal game of catch.

      "I got out to about 60 or 70 feet and started feeling a little
bit of stiffness. I wasn't sure if it was from the forearm or from
the elbow. I just kept throwing, and it became clear that it was an
injured elbow. It was getting harder and harder. It became clear
that it didn't feel good. I don't have a number on what I threw,
but it wasn't very long. It was probably only a few minutes of
playing catch when I started feeling stiff."


      Nathan said he would rehabilitate from the surgery in Minnesota.


      "I think it will help me get through this thing and at least be
a part of the team a little bit," he said. "I'm very comfortable
in Minnesota. We have a house there, and my family would like it.
Obviously, I would like to help out whoever is thrown into that
role."

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Minnesota Twins closer Joe Nathan will
miss the 2010 season because of an elbow injury that will require
surgery.

Needing elbow surgery, Twins' Nathan out for season

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