Cardinals' Jordan Schafer: Will miss entire 2017 season

Schafer is scheduled to undergo elbow surgery on Friday and will miss the entire 2017 season, Derrick Goold of the Saint Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Although it seems likely that Schafer will need Tommy John surgery, it's possible that he'll be able to undergo an alternative procedure known as "primary repair" surgery that carries a slightly shorter recovery time. However, until Schafer goes under the knife, there is no way of knowing which procedure will end up taking place. Regardless of the surgery, it's apparent he'll be out for all of the 2017 season. It is unclear if he will attempt to come back as a reliever or an outfielder.