The Pittsburgh Pirates previously thought outfielder and reigning NL MVP Andrew McCutchen could avoid the disabled list, but the avulsion fracture of his 11th rib proved too significant for him to remain on the active roster.
McCtuchen was placed on the disabled list on Monday, but it can be made retroactive to a previous date when he was injured and remained on the active roster. However, despite making significant progress in his recovery, the team is still unsure when McCutchen will be able to return, so backdating the DL stint might not matter.
The team will now move left-fielder Starling Marte to center field and use a combination of Travis Snider and Josh Harrison in left field. Gregory Polanco, who was called up from Triple-A earlier this year, will remain in right field. McCutchen's presence in the outfield will be sorely missed, as he's been batting .322 (1st in NL) with a slugging percentage of .626 (1st), 13 home runs (T-3rd), and 44 RBIs (1st) since June 1. His performance has coincided with the Pirates' success, while the team has a 26-15 record (2nd in MLB), .279 batting average (3rd), .812 OPS (3rd), and 63 home runs (2nd) over the same time period.
McCutchen suffered his rib injury in last Sunday's game against the Arizona Diamondbacks. During an at-bat in the eighth inning, McCutchen hit a sacrifice fly to left field and drove in the tying run, but after the swing he grabbed his left side and was noticeably in pain. At first believed to be an oblique injury, he was then diagnosed with an "avulsion fracture involving the costochondral cartilage of the left 11th rib" on August 5.
The night before his injury, McCutchen was hit in the back by a 95-mph fastball courtesy of Arizona's Randall Delgado, in what was a retaliation effort in response to Pirates reliever Ernesto Frieri accidentally hitting Diamondbacks first baseman Paul Goldschmidt in the second game of the series. McCutchen reported feeling 'tight' the day after being hit by Delgado, which could have contributed to his rib injury, but an orthopedic surgeon ruled out that speculation.
The Pirates will have some readjusting to do while McCutchen is out of the lineup as they hold the second NL wild card spot and remain 2.5 games behind the NL Central leading Milwaukee Brewers.
You can read more about Andrew McCutchen's trip to the disabled list in this NBC Sports HardballTalk article.
