Florida State ace Tyler Holton out for the season

Florida State ace Tyler Holton is out for the season after tearing the UCL in his throwing elbow on opening day.

The left hander and two-way player is scheduled to have Tommy John surgery Thursday morning at the Andrews Institute in Gulf Breeze.

“Tyler is a fine young man and we’re all disappointed at this setback in his career,” head coach Mike Martin said.

“He’s doing the best thing right now. We’ll be there for him and help guide him through the rehab process, but as a team, we have to keep moving forward on our goals for this season.”

Holton went 4.2 innings against Xavier last Friday before he was pulled.

Holton had been shaking his left arm out after pitches for most of the inning, and was unable to continue.

He went straight into FSU's clubhouse after leaving the mound, but returned to the dugout later in the game.

Holton had an MRI done on his left elbow on Tuesday, and it was discovered that he had torn the ligament.

The former Lincoln High star was earmarked to start at first base when he was not pitching.

Holton posted a message on Instagram Wednesday.

"After meeting with doctors, my family and I have decided the best thing for me to do is have surgery. Unfortunately that means I’ll be out for the remainder of the season. That being said, we are Florida State and our goal stays the same. This team is special and will do great things this year! God has a plan and a purpose for everything He does! Thank you for all the thoughts and prayers. It’s not the end of the world, just a setback. GO NOLES!!"

Junior Cole Sands, who started 17 games last year, will move from Saturday to Friday in the starting rotation this weekend against Troy.

Sands allowed two earned runs in five innings in last Saturday's victory over visiting Xavier. The hard-throwing right hander from North Florida Christian struck out nine.

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Holton was named a first-team All-American by the American Baseball Coaches Association and D1Baseball during the 2017 season.

He finished the year with a 10-3 record and a 2.34 ERA. He struck out 144 batters, while walking just 31, in 119.1 innings of work in 18 appearances.

Holton had six strikeouts and had allowed one walk, one hit, and no runs before he was lifted against Xavier.