Northridge’s Ailing Morales May Be Finished

Steven Morales probably has made his last pitch for Cal State Northridge.

Morales, a senior right-hander who was expected to be a mainstay in the Matador starting rotation, experienced swelling and tenderness in his throwing arm after pitching against Cal State Long Beach on Tuesday.

“It doesn’t look like he’s going to be able to pitch for us,” Coach Bill Kernen said Thursday.

Against Long Beach, Morales allowed three singles, two doubles and a two-run home run. He retired only one of the 10 batters he faced in his first appearance since April 4 of last season, when pain in his right forearm and elbow forced him out of a game against Nevada. Morales missed the remainder of last season with what was diagnosed as a stress fracture in his elbow.

At the time of his injury, Morales was 4-1 with a team-best 2.43 earned-run average. He had 66 strikeouts in 63 innings.

“He’s done as far as I can tell,” Kernen said. “It’s just not getting any better. I have no plans whatsoever for him coming back, and that’s a tough one for us. We planned on him being one of our main guys.”