M's reliever Reitsma set for season-ending surgery, mulls retirement

SEATTLE -- Seattle Mariners reliever Chris Reitsma will have surgery on Thursday to relieve pain in his arthritic right pitching elbow.

Reitsma said he believed the procedure will end his season in July for the second consecutive year.

"I'm done," a visibly shaken Reitsma said after meeting Monday afternoon with Mariners medical director Dr. Edward Khalfayan, who will perform the surgery. The doctor recommended Reitsma's fifth elbow surgery -- and second in just over a year -- this one an arthroscopic procedure to remove scar tissue and explore the inside of the joint.

When asked if he meant done for the season or done for his career, the 29-year-old who entered last season as the closer for the Atlanta Braves said, "For the season."

As for retirement, Reitsma, who had a career high 15 saves in 2005 with the Braves, said: "Maybe it's just the card I drew and I go on with life. I don't know.

"That's one alternative, but it's pretty hard to get my mind around that right now. ... Basically, I have a 60-year-old's elbow."

Mariners spokesman Tim Hevly said Monday evening that the team is not declaring Reitsma out for the season, but at least six weeks.

The Mariners placed Reitsma on the 15-day disabled list, but will now be able to free a place on their 40-man roster by moving Reitsma to the 60-day list. Seattle recalled left-hander Ryan Rowland-Smith from Triple-A Tacoma.

The Mariners are still trying hard to acquire a proven setup reliever before -- or even after -- Tuesday's deadline for trading without waivers.

Reitsma was booed off his home field Sunday while allowing four runs and five hits and getting just one out against Oakland. He said he was pitching with pain from essentially bone-on-bone rubbing in an elbow that is missing almost all of its cartilage.

"I've been taking every kind of medicine to calm it down, pain pills," Reitsma said. "I showered 10 to 15 minutes every morning just to get it moving."

Seattle signed the native of Calgary, Alberta, to a $2.05 million contract for this season to be their primary setup man to closer J.J. Putz. But Reitsma has gone 0-2 with a 7.61 ERA in 26 games. He'd already been on the disabled list twice this season, in May and June.

"I feel really bad that they thought they were bringing in somebody they thought they could count on and I let the team down, I let the organization down," Reitsma said.