BOSTON -- Red Sox right-hander Garrett Whitlock, who has accepted the reality that he won¡¯t throw another pitch in 2024, has vowed to be ¡°Boston Strong¡± during his recovery from what he hopes will be an internal bracing procedure to repair the UCL in his right elbow.

The alternative would be Tommy John UCL reconstruction surgery, a procedure Whitlock had five years ago and hopes to avoid this time.

¡°I think the mentality where I'm at is that I feel like I'm able to connect to a lot of Boston fans,¡± Whitlock said before the Red Sox's 6-3 loss to the Brewers on Saturday. ¡°Boston is a city built on resilience. It's a city built on determination and hard work. I feel like I'm really starting to connect with them personally.¡±

Whitlock¡¯s appointment with Dr. Jeff Dugas is set for Wednesday in Birmingham, Ala. Whitlock underwent Tommy John surgery from the same doctor.

¡°I have a really good relationship with Dr. Dugas,¡± said Whitlock. ¡°As of right now, the internal brace is what he's looking for. Obviously, everything can change, but that's kind of the thing right now. But yeah, that's what we're looking at.¡±

While many pitchers would be dwelling on their misfortune, Whitlock ¨C--who dealt with the tragic death of his brother Gavrie last summer -- is able to find comfort in perspective.

¡°There¡¯s a reason I¡¯m wearing this shirt [that says] ¡®Ain't found a way to kill me yet.¡¯ It's one of those things where just because I'm dealt another blow, it's all about how you get back up,¡± said Whitlock. ¡°How you fight. And that's how I'm viewing this and that¡¯s how I¡¯m attacking this. ¡°

Whitlock made four starts this season for the Red Sox, going 1-0 with a 1.96 ERA. He was placed on the 15-day injured list on April 17 with a left oblique strain. In a Minor League rehab start for Triple-A Worcester on May 15, Whitlock felt great and expected to be activated five days later. But the day after the rehab start, his elbow flared up.

¡°My arm looked like a fricking balloon,¡± Whitlock said. ¡°I was like, ¡®What the heck happened here?¡¯ It's one of those things where it's a fluke thing that happened and just another thing I¡¯m dealing with. This is something that I¡¯m gonna come from and I'm gonna be better, I'm gonna be stronger and it's one of those things where my job now is to be the best teammate I can be to all these guys.¡±

Whitlock also vowed to redouble his already impressive efforts in the community.

¡°Also, be the best I can be impacting people off the field,¡± said Whitlock. ¡°Just dig even more into my Jimmy Fund work here. Dig even more into helping the communities around Boston. That¡¯s what I can do right now and just really attack rehab in the best way I can.¡±

For Whitlock, the biggest silver lining in his situation is that his wife Jordan is scheduled to deliver the couple¡¯s first child -- a son -- in early July, and he will now be fully present for the first few months of fatherhood.

¡°Yeah, that was the thing that me and my wife talked about is that sometimes with this [baseball] life, there's no certainty that [I] won¡¯t miss the actual birth, and now I know that I'm gonna be able to be there to hold my son in my arms,¡± Whitlock said. ¡°As every parent here knows, there¡¯s nothing else that can replicate that feeling or that can take away from that.¡±

Having already been through Tommy John surgery once, Whitlock is confident he can make a significant contribution in ¡®25 if he undergoes the expected bracing procedure.

Fellow Red Sox righty Lucas Giolito is currently going through recovery from the internal brace procedure.

¡°So I've talked to Gio, and there's a lot of people nowadays who have had TJ and then the internal brace,¡± Whitlock said. ¡°I¡¯ve reached out to a couple people. That¡¯s the thing is, it's not a career ender, it¡¯s not anything like that. The rehab from this is a ton easier than Tommy John, so it's one of those things where you just keep going forward.¡±

And for Whitlock, that is made easier by looking around the city he works in.

"I¡¯m gonna be that guy for each one of my teammates and for the people of Boston. People in Boston go through way harder things and they fight and they¡¯re resilient. It's like, 'Hey, why can't I do that too?'¡±