Now that we've had time to discuss and digest this morning's news, it might be worth it to take a look at some other prominent pitchers who have undergone Tommy John surgery. A few of the more famous names are after the jump (we've already covered Kerry Wood in this post), and the results just might surprise you.

Tommy John-The man who gave the procedure his name when he underwent it in 1974 pitched until 1989, when he retired at age 46. For the last 13 years of his career, beginning with his return in 1976, he amassed a 164-125 record, pitched 2,544.2 innings, and threw 91 complete games.

John Smoltz-Underwent the surgery prior to the 2000 season. Returned as a reliever in 2001 and dazzled with a 1.068, second-lowest in his career to that point. The next year, Smoltz finished third in the National League Cy Young voting with 55 saves and a 1.033 WHIP.

Chris Carpenter- Missed most of 2007 and 2008 after dealing with complications from the surgery and various other elbow injuries. Won the National League Cy Young Award in 2009 with a 17-4 record, a 2.24 ERA, 750 strikeouts and a WHIP of 1.007 in 192.2 innings.

Josh Johnson-Since coming back from Tommy John surgery midway through the 2008 season, he's gone 33-11 with a 2.98 ERA and an ERA + (a ballpark and era-adjusted stat to determine how good a pitcher's stats are over a given period) of 142.

Tim Hudson- In his first full season back from Tommy John surgery, Hudson is having the best year of his career, with a 14-5 record, a 2.28 ERA and a WHIP of 1.098. And he's durable, too: In his 26 starts, he's pitched fewer than six innings twice.

So, Nats fans, do you feel just a little bit better now?