Welcome back to another rousing edition of Razzball Ambulance Chasers. The bodies are still warm. The hamstrings are served strained.
Speaking of rousing, warm, and strained, I took a note from MarmosDad’s playbook and injured my leg in a sports incident (or rather a series of sports incidents). Now, I get to attend weekly physical therapy. This week, I looked my physical therapist deep in the eyes as she massaged my quad and asked “Physical Therapist, I hear people talk about ‘the groin’ as an alternative word for the crotch. Can you help me understand this?”. It was an intimate moment, and she chuckled and said “We all have a groin, and it’s in our inner thigh.”
And that’s how I was inspired to write my first romance novel.
Whose groin was gonged this week? Let’s jump in and find out.
Notable Injuries
AL Central
Carlos Carrasco (SP, CLE), neck: Elder statesman Carrasco was moved to the 15-day IL with neck spasms. His performance this season has been worse than projected: 5.16 ERA, 5.31 FIP. Maybe the neck issue influenced his performance for a while. Carrasco is eligible to return in early June.
Xzavion Curry stepped in for Carrasco. He’s done fine, but let’s look at some other options. You won’t have to look too far to find fellow Guardians Ben Lively (apparently no relation to Blake Lively) and Logan Allen.
In his last 5.7 IP, Lively has 11.1 K/9 and 0.0 BB/9. In his last 6 IP, Allen has a 10.9 K/9 and 1.5 BB/9 with a squeaky clean 0.00 ERA and 1.20 FIP. Once again, Allen may be in “How long will this last?’ area. At the time of publication, I will not have seen the outcome of the Guardians vs. Angels, but the outlook was not good for leftie Logan. Don’t talk to me until I’ve had my coffee!
Eloy Jiménez (DH, CWS), hamstring: Regular visitor Eloy is back with us for a hamstring injury. Timeline of return is uncertain. My heavens look at this list of Eloy’s injuries over the past 5 years. Hamstring injuries (among other things) appear to be a once-a-year promise these days despite moving away from the outfield.
Eloy Jimenez’s injury history is longer than a CVS receipt. pic.twitter.com/0lmaIRrtNy
— Mike (@ChiSoxFanMike) May 23, 2024
Anyway, I’ll get back on track here. If you are looking strictly for a DH, Mark Vientos has been busy. In his last 14 AB, Vientos is hitting .357/.471/.786. He hit a homer as I wrote the last sentence.
MARK VIENTOS ? 3RD HOMERUN OF THE YEAR!!!!! BACK TO BACK HOMERUNS FOR THE METS!!!!!!!
— Nicholas Fasullo (@NicholasFasull1) May 25, 2024
AL East
Zach Eflin (SP, TBR), back: Eflin is out with a spot of lower back inflammation. He could return in early June. Like Carrasco, Eflin has had a rougher than projected season. I was going to propose Alek Manoah because he almost got me, but no, I won’t be fooled.
Dean Kremer (SP, BAL), triceps: Ohhhh noooo Pt. 1. It’s a double whammy for the Birds. Kremer goes to the IL with a strained right triceps. There is no timeline as of yet. Albert Suarez and Cole Irvin may see some more time as starters. Both have been functioning as relievers so far this season. In 25.3 IP, Suarez is has a 1.78 ERA and 2.82 FIP with 7.9 K/9 and 2.1 BB/9. Irvin has been a little more variable this season, and his last week was a little bit of a stinker.
Albert Suárez surprised a lot of people today. Myself included.
Looks like he throws 4 pitches: FF / CH / FC / CU
The FF sat 96 with league average vert but 13" of horizontal movement. That'd be top 10 in baseball.
He recorded 12 whiffs w/ 10 on the heater
Here are all 7 Ks pic.twitter.com/TLFcTE0Gr1
— Alex Fast (@AlexFast8) March 5, 2024
John Means (SP, BAL), forearm: Ohhhh noooo Pt. 2. Means goes back to the IL with a left forearm strain and was seeking a second opinion on his forearm, which isn’t always bad but is mostly…un-good.
Garrett Whitlock (SP, BOS), elbow: Whitlock is on the IL with potential UCL damage in his pitching elbow. At the time of publication, surgery was not certain, but there were many reports that it was a likely outcome. We may have seen the last of Gary Dub this season.
AL West
Jon Gray (SP, TEX), groin: The Rangers pitching staff appears to be even more cursed than originally suspected. Maybe because they still don’t have a Prid…never mind. Gray joins the 15-day IL with a mild strained groin. Luckily, Bruce Bochy shared that they expected Gray to return after the 15-day stint, per Evan Grant. Jesús Tinoco was added to cover Gray’s spot. Look across the AL West to find José Soriano. He is on the Angels and no Jon Gray, but he is serviceable for a short time period.
José Soriano, Dirty 93mph Splitter. ?? pic.twitter.com/POMEk8E0Gx
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) May 19, 2024
Zach Neto (SS, LAA), elbow: Bummer for many of you as Neto went DTD with right elbow soreness, but an MRI showed the injury is just some inflammation. There are some sources that say he will be back in action today. He was not in the lineup last night but mentioned he was available if needed.
Esteury Ruiz (OF, OAK), wrist: Esteury Ruiz was officially moved to the IL because of a strained left wrist. Ruiz originally injured his wrist a couple of weeks ago during a diving catch. Daz Cameron was recalled to take Ruiz’s spot on the roster. Ruiz’s teammate Seth Brown could be an easy pick-up here. Brown has been doing well in recent performances. In 17 AB, Brown has 2 HR, 4 RBIs, and 1 SB.
Seth Brown makes it a brand new ballgame pic.twitter.com/ITonGsHNBX
— MLB (@MLB) May 22, 2024
NL Central
Jake Fraley (OF, CIN), hand: Fraley was hit by pitch on his hand. However, he is back in the mix and celebrating by being patriotic.
Jake Fraley is expected to be available tonight pic.twitter.com/ecoSJ1qbfS
— Votto De La Cruz (@EvilJoeyVotto) May 24, 2024
NL West
Xander Bogaerts (2B/SS, SDP), shoulder: Bogaerts sustained a shoulder practice after diving to make a catch. The team shared that only the bone was damaged in the fall, and no surgery would be required to repair the bone or any soft tissue. The current timeline for return is end of summer.
If you’re in a pinch, Dylan Moore has been heating up. Will his performance be sustainable? Probably not. In his past 17 AB, he is hitting .412/.565/1.118 with 3 HR and 6 RBIs. It’s a little bonkers, but if you have some room, (to be read in the tone of a soccer mom who’s wine drunk on a Friday night) it could be funnnnnn.
Dylan Moore has a 146 wRC+ and has put up 1.2 fWAR
He's been unbelievable. Find a way to get him in the lineup everyday, pic.twitter.com/c5fnqMF312
— Steve (@MarinersSteve) May 22, 2024
Max Muncy (3B, LAD), oblique: Muncy sustained a Grade 1 strained oblique last Friday. He is not expected back any earlier than June. Enrique Hernández has been serving in Muncy’s place at 3B and hitting with mixed results.
There are some other options. Detroit’s Colt Keith is on a little streak. In his last 20 AB, he is hitting .550/.571/.650 with 11 H and 4 RBIs. If you need someone in the NL East, Diamondback Kevin Newman is hitting .300/.364/.350 with 6 H and 2 BB in his last 20 AB.
Colt Keith in may
44 PAs
132 wRC+
.350/.386/.425 .811 ops pic.twitter.com/AmSWEhQvLQ— cyjobe (@tigersslab) May 21, 2024
Injury Updates
Here are the most speedy updates I can give you. If I missed anything or you want to know more (or less!), I’ll see you in the comments.
- Gerrit Cole (SP, NYY), elbow: facing hitters before starting rehab; planning on June return.
- Jacob deGrom (SP, TEX), elbow: shooting for August return per MLB’s Kennedi Landry.
- Brandon Drury (1B/2B, LAA), hamstring: hitting in batting cage but not running yet.
- Nathan Eovaldi (SP, TEX), groin: throwing in the bullpen; may receive news about a rehab assignment in the next week.
- Ke’Bryan Hayes (3B, PIT), back: returned to baseball activities; might be back sometime in the next week.
- Josh Jung (3B, TEX), wrist: timeline updated to an early July return.
- Steven Kwan (OF, CLE), leg: may be able to start rehab assignment in next week.
- DJ LeMahieu (1B/3B, NYY), foot: may debut next week.
- Wyatt Langford (OF, TEX), hamstring: early June return.
- Royce Lewis (3B, MIN), quadricep: return before mid-July
- Kenta Maeda (SP, DET), illness: may pitch this weekend per Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press.
- Bobby Miller (SP, LAD), shoulder inflammation: rehab assignment begins Sunday per Juan Toribio of MLB.com.
- Sean Murphy (C, ATL), oblique: destroying balls in rehab.
- Luis Robert (OF, CWS), hip: also destroying balls in rehab.
- Lane Thomas (OF, WSH), knee: should return in the next week.
- Trea Turner (SS, PHI), hamstring: timeline still 6 weeks from early May (so mid to late June return).
- Max Scherzer (SP, TEX), back: earliest he could be activated is May 28; no certain updates.
- Alek Thomas (OF, ARI), hamstring: ramping up activity; will need a rehab assignment.
- Gavin Williams (SP, CLE), elbow: throwing bullpen sessions; June return possible.
Sean Murphy literally hits a ball out of our stadium for his second @SoFi home run in two rehab starts. pic.twitter.com/nAhAXPG8P7
— Gwinnett Stripers (@GoStripers) May 24, 2024
Protect yo neck. And groins. See you next week!
If you are socially active, find me over on Twitter or BlueSky. Sometimes I talk about baseball. Sometimes I post dog photos. It’s a mixed bag!
Nooooooo!!!
I hope it doesn’t look anything like my Grimace leg did last year.
Ice and Tootmakers for you for sure!
Seriously though, I hope you’re doing ok. That injury was not fun at all. I’m glad you got hat sounds like a good Physio person. Mine was great and helped a ton!
I should probably send her your way…or maybe to go see John Means. SMH.
Haha no you definitely win “Most Injured.” I have runner’s knee. I’ve only gone through 2-3 days of work, and it’s already helping a lot!
R.I.P Means.
Shouldn’t Corbin Carrol be listed as an injury? It’s obvious his injured shoulder has hindered his swing. You can’t be this bad for this long without an underlying issue. Here’s hoping the Diamond Backs bite the bullet, put him on the 60 day IL, have the surgery to repair the shoulder and come out healthy for 2025. If the Diamond Backs are seriously trying to compete in 2024, there’s no way they can continue to compete with CC in their current lineup.
That’s a good point. He is very off (understatement of the year), but I’ve seen a few different theories out there beyond shoulder stuff and more about his swing changes (though those may be classified as shoulder related). There’s probably a psychological component in there too at this point.
It’s very sad, and I agree. They’ve also been down Alek Thomas for a while now.
Generally, I usually don’t put players here until they hit the IL or are definitely going to the IL (Edwin Diaz celebration fall style) or they are top 300-400 (definitely some exceptions for this) and go DTD with something that goes beyond the expected DTD (Austin Riley) or good news about DTD. That being said, I am glad everyone follows up in the comments for discussions or misses like this.
I now see that Bogaerts is trying to get the real injury just right? Thats why he is practicing!
He’s like Outback Steakhouse: No rules. Just right.
Good information.
I am hoping Neto is back today. I always hate when guys are swinging well, and get hurt. If he struggles, we will never know what could have been. Seen it many times before. Hoping Neto is indeed 100% healthy.
I think Carrasco is washed up. He’s been bad/injured on off for almost 4 years now.
Mets need to invent an injury to get Bret Baty right. I cannot understand how a 70 grade power hitter is this bad….NO power.
Only an injury can explain where the power has gone.
Me too. He said he was ready last night too. So fingers crossed while he’s cooking.
I agree with you about Carrasco. I dabbled with him 2-3 years ago, and that was that for me.
Maybe we’ll see Baty on the phantom IL, and the Mets won’t get busted this time! But also I agree with you. Where there is smoke there is fire.