James Paxton’s season is over before it began.

The Mariners pitcher will undergo season-ending elbow surgery, manager Scott Servais announced on Tuesday.

Paxton, who spent 2019 and 2020 with the Yankees before re-signing with Seattle (who drafted him in 2010) in the offseason, lasted just 24 pitches in his first start of the season. He was originally diagnosed with a forearm strain, but on a second opinion it was determined the injury was more serious.

Servais stopped short of saying it would be Tommy John surgery, though it was recommended for him last week.

Paxton signed a one-year deal with Seattle in the offseason worth $8.5 million, and will be a free agent at the end of his recovery. He will be 33 at the start of the 2022 season.