Peter Diana, Post-Gazette Associated Press Pirates pitcher Bryan Bullington had shoulder surgery yesterday. Click photo for larger image.

Bryan Bullington, expected to be in the mix for a starting job with the Pirates next spring, won't be able to pitch in a game until perhaps June because of shoulder surgery he had yesterday.

Bullington, the top pick overall in the 2002 draft, had surgery to repair damage to the labrum in his right shoulder.

The Pirates had hoped the arthroscopic surgery wouldn't be as extensive as it turned out to be and that Bullington would be able to begin throwing in December.

But Keith Meister, the Texas Rangers' team doctor who performed the surgery, found more damage than a Magnetic Resonance Imaging test showed.

Bullington won't be able to begin a throwing program until mid-January -- about the time the Pirates conduct their annual minicamp in Bradenton, Fla.

Bullington wasn't able to pitch in a game for Class AAA Indianapolis until May this season because of shoulder soreness. In 18 starts for the Indians, he was 9-5 with a 3.38 earned run average.

The Pirates brought him up Sept. 16. Two days later, he made his major-league debut and pitched 1¹/₃ innings of relief against Cincinnati.

He didn't pitch again because of shoulder soreness. The Pirates assigned him to the Arizona Fall League, which began Oct. 4, but he didn't make an appearance before opting for surgery.

Left-hander Shane Youman replaced Bullington on the Fall League full roster. Youman, who pitched for Class AA Altoona this season, had been on the "taxi squad" in Arizona, meaning he could only pitch two days a week.

Now Youman can pitch in any game.