Adbert Alzolay likely won’t throw another pitch in 2024.

The 29-year-old right-hander has been out of action since May 13 with a right flexor strain in his forearm.

After a long shutdown period, Alzolay had progressed to the point where he was facing live hitters in minor league rehab games. He pitched a pair of games in the Arizona Complex League and then tossed an inning for Triple-A Iowa on July 27.

But he was still experiencing issues with the forearm and came back to Chicago to seek a second opinion.

Now he is expected to undergo surgery and be done for the rest of the season.

“Adbert is going to have surgery,” manager Craig Counsell said Thursday afternoon. “He’s seeking second opinions just to determine kind of exactly what [surgery] and where he’s going to have surgery.”

The Cubs are expecting to receive more clarity on Alzolay’s situation early next week.

“Obviously he got to a point where he was feeling good and was pitching and then through the outings, he just couldn’t recover,” Counsell said. “You knew something’s wrong when you’re not recovering.”

It’s a tough blow for Alzolay, who emerged as the team’s closer in the middle of last season and saved 22 games. He came into 2024 with the 9th inning job but struggled out of the gate and was ultimately removed as closer.

In total, he was 1-4 with a 4.67 ERA, 1.44 WHIP, 1 hold and 4 saves in 9 chances across 18 appearances.

Alzolay went 22-for-25 in save chances last season and posted a strong 2.67 ERA and 1.02 WHIP.

This will be the second season out of the last three where Alzolay has missed most of the year due to injury. He only made 6 appearances in 2022 due to a lat injury.

Alzolay is still under team control through the 2026 season and as the Cubs look to build their bullpen for next year and beyond, they will need to figure out where the right-hander fits into the long-term picture.