The minimum recovery time for such a procedure is normally 12 months, and pitchers rarely even return to their previous form until months later. Romero will almost certainly miss the entire 2019 season, meaning he will be 24 when he can resume his push to the big leagues. Given that some within the organization felt his stuff was big league ready when they made him a risky first-round pick in 2017, that does not necessarily mean he will be too far behind schedule.

But the Nationals’ minor league pitching depth continues to suffer. It was already slimmer than they wanted heading into a season in which they need to replenish their rotation and bullpen and could use a few enticing trade chips, as well as potential big league fixes.

Joe Ross will be activated from the disabled list Tuesday after undergoing Tommy John surgery last July, and that will give the Nationals a chance to see what they have in the right-hander who started a game in the 2016 National League Division Series. Erick Fedde will be activated, too, and he will get starts down the stretch. Both have long been projected in middle to back of future Nationals rotations, and the Nationals will have to decide exactly how reliable they can be heading into 2019 — and how much depth they will need to pursue in free agency or the trade market.

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But in losing Romero, they effectively lose a first-round pick for two years, a pick they knew was risky because of the off-field issues that cost Romero his spot on the University of Houston team, but not because of health issues. The Nationals have a long history of successful Tommy John rehabs that include Fedde, Stephen Strasburg, Jordan Zimmermann and several others. They draft players that need the surgery to get top-10 talent later in the first round. But when they saw a steal in Romero, it was not because he might need the procedure.

Romero made seven starts for Class A Hagerstown this year and was pitching to a 3.91 ERA before being placed on the disabled list. He struck out 34 batters in 25 1/3 innings. Hagerstown activated Romero on Aug. 15, and he threw two innings for them before returning to the DL on Aug. 18. Neal El-Attrache, who has performed numerous Tommy John surgeries on Nationals products (and Scott Boras clients like Romero) performed the procedure.

With Romero down, 2017 second-round pick Wil Crowe and 2018 first-rounder Mason Denaburg become the most highly touted starting prospects in the Nationals’ system, though neither is near big league ready. Crowe reached Class AA Harrisburg this year, but struggled with a 6.15 ERA in five starts there. Mason Denaburg spent this summer with the Gulf Coast Nationals, and pitched in extended spring training games. He is the first high school pitcher the Nationals have taken in the first round in Rizzo’s tenure, and the team opted to keep him out of the affiliates for his first half season as a pro.

In other Nationals minor league news, the team extended its contracts with Class A Potomac and Class A Hagerstown through the 2020 season. Their contract with Class AAA Syracuse expires after this season, meaning they will need to find a new home before 2019.

The Sports Capitol first reported Romero’s surgery.