"This is something that has to be done, but I'm hoping I can come back and be better," Corpas said, according to The Denver Post.
The Rockies, who lead the NL wild-card race, on Thursday made a trade to replace Corpas in the bullpen, obtaining Rafael Betancourt from the Cleveland Indians for minor league pitcher Connor Graham.
Corpas
Betancourt, who has spent his entire seven-year career with Cleveland, learned of the deal following Thursday's 5-4 victory at Toronto.
"I was here for a long time with this team and I have a lot of good friends here, front office, coaches, players," Betancourt said. "They've always been great to me. I can't say anything bad about it."
The 34-year-old has been the Indians' most reliable reliever for the past month. The Indians held a $5 million club option for him in 2010 and did not want to pick it up.
"Looking at the market this season and next, we don't see $5 million as the right price for that kind of role in the bullpen," Indians general manager Mark Shapiro said.
The best-case scenario for Corpas is a return in September. But the surgery could cost him the rest of the season, according to media reports.
Corpas, who is 1-3 with a 5.88 ERA in 35 appearances, went on the disabled list June 20 with bone chips and missed four weeks. He returned to the Rockies' roster and made two appearances. But after a rough outing Monday, he noticed swelling in his elbow during a postgame meal.
"After the game, I was at my house and trying to eat something and I looked down and [my elbow] was big, swollen," Corpas told reporters. "I have never had surgery before, so I am a little nervous right now."
The Rockies' medical director, Dr. Thomas J. Noonan, will perform the procedure, according to MLB.com.
What the Rockies will do to replace Corpas as a set-up man remains to be seen.
The past two games have seen Juan Rincon pitch the eighth, with mixed results. Tuesday, he gave up a two-run, game-winning home run, but Wednesday he rebounded to pitch a scoreless inning in the Rockies' 4-3 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks.
In 29 appearances this season, Betancourt is 1-2 with a 3.52 ERA. The right-hander has given up 25 hits and struck out 32 in 30 2/3 innings.
Betancourt has been primarily a set-up man since joining the Indians in 2003. He had a 1.47 ERA in 68 games when the Indians made the playoffs in 2007.
The 6-foot-7 Graham has spent the entire season with Class A Modesto of the California League. The 24-year-old went 7-4 with a 3.14 ERA in 16 starts.
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