Octavio Dotel visits Dr. James Andrews for second opinion on elbow

Jason Beck reported Octavio Dotel has received a second opinion on his elbow issue from noted orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews.

The good news is there's no news. As originally suspected there is no structural damage to Dotel's elbow, despite ongoing discomfort.

The bad news is the prescription given was more rest. Dotel won't throw for six days, and there is no timetable set for his return.

Dotel was placed on the 15-Day disabled list on April 23, retroactive to April 20, with right elbow inflammation. Dotel wasn't activated when eligible (May 4) being his recovery had been slow and would need a minor league rehab stint when healthy. It was assumed it would only be a matter of time until Dotel returned to the Tigers. The injured elbow said otherwise.

Before being placed on the DL, Dotel had pitched 4 2/3 innings over six appearances with an elevated ERA of 13.50 and a WHIP of 3.00. Most of the damage done to Dotel's numbers were caused by the last two games before the DL stint. Dotel faced just two batters in the 14 inning victory over the Mariners on April 17, allowing a hit and walk. Then came a disastrous appearance in an 8-1 loss to the Angels on April 19, allowing five runs and four hits in 2/3 of an inning.

The Tigers have filled the rather large bullpen hole (57 games in 2012) left by the 37 year old Dotel thanks to the effectiveness of recent call up Jose Ortega, who joined the club when Phil Coke went down with a groin strain. The 24 year old rookie right-hander has yet to allow a run over four innings.