The laundry list of injuries in Major League Baseball continues to get longer and longer. The New York Yankees, Toronto Blue Jays, Los Angeles Dodgers, Cincinnati Reds and Houston Astros are the latest clubs on this week's MLB injury report.
New York received some potentially devastating news on Tuesday night after MRI results forced starting pitcher Masahiro Tanaka to the 15-day disabled list. Tanaka was found to have tendinitis in his wrist and a small muscle strain in his right forearm, according to Jack Curry of the YES Network. The forearm strain is something to be concerned about because Tanaka partially tore his UCL last July and decided to rehab the injury rather than undergo surgery. There is no timetable for his return right now.
In Toronto, Blue Jays' shortstop Jose Reyes has been dealing with a small crack in his rib for over a week, but the team finally placed him on the disabled list on Tuesday night. He's been limited to hitting from the right side of the plate and has seen much less success since suffering the injury, prompting Toronto to make the move. Since April 13 the veteran is 5-for-36 with three runs scored, four RBIs and two stolen bases.
On the West Coast, the Dodgers placed outfielder Carl Crawford on the disabled list after the veteran tore his oblique in the team's win over the San Francisco Giants on Monday, according to Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times. This is a big blow for the team's outfield, which is already without Yasiel Puig, who is on the DL with a hamstring strain. Manager Don Mattingly will likely work out some sort of platoon system with Andre Ethier, Scott Van Slyke, Alex Guerrero and Enrique Hernandez until the outfield gets healthy.
The Cincinnati Reds are facing a similar situation as the Yankees, and have placed starting pitcher Homer Bailey on the disabled list with a sprained elbow, according to manager Bryan Price. The right-hander was shut down in August last season because of a torn flexor tendon. He underwent surgery in September and began the 2015 season on the DL, but Price also noted surgery could be an option again this time around. Even without surgery, it's likely Bailey is out longer than his 15-day DL stint suggests.
Lastly, the Astros have lost Jed Lowrie until the All-Star break because of a ligament tear in his right thumb, the team announced on Tuesday night. The veteran suffered the injury sliding into home plate during Monday's victory over the San Diego Padres. Houston signed the 31-year-old to a three-year, $23 million deal in the offseason and it was paying off as Lowrie was slashing .300/.432/.567 with 11 runs scored, four home runs and 10 RBIs thus far in 2015. He will undergo surgery to repair the injury and will be out of action for a while.
We'll be keeping updates on these big-name injuries as the weeks progress.
UPDATE: Homer Bailey has been placed on the 60-day DL, according to Mark Sheldon of MLB.com.
