Cleveland Guardians Injury Updates on Josh Naylor and Triston McKenzie
The Cleveland Guardians, in a battle for the American League Central, got a pair of important injury updates with regards to Josh Naylor and Triston McKenze.
First on Naylor and his ailing wrist. The following updates come from the Rotowire fantasy baseball portal:
Naylor is expected to undergo further evaluation on his right wrist Tuesday, P.J. Ziegler of Fox 8 reports.
ANALYSIS
Naylor appeared to be in discomfort while at the dish during Monday's game against Atlanta, but he managed to talk his way into staying in the contest after receiving a visit from his manager and the team trainer. After the game, skipper Terry Francona noted that Naylor will undergo imaging on his right wrist to determine the severity of the issue. The team should know more about his status moving forward once the scans come back.
The Guardians are a relatively light-hitting team so any loss of Naylor is significant. Hopefully he's OK this week, but if not, the team could put him on the injured list to allow him time during the All-Star break to recover.
He's hitting .295 this season with 10 homers, 60 RBI and five stolen bases. Lifetime, he's a .262 hitter with 46 homers and 198 RBI.
With regards to McKenzie, one of the best young pitchers in the American League:
McKenzie (elbow) will remain shut down for three more weeks, Zack Meisel of The Athletic reports.
ANALYSIS
McKenzie has already been shut down for more than two weeks after being diagnosed with partially torn right UCL in mid-June. He will attempt to rehab the injury with rest, with the goal of starting a throwing program later this month and eventually returning late in the season. Of course, Tommy John surgery is always a possibility with this type of injury if rest and rehab doesn't do the trick.
That's certainly an ominous update on McKenzie, who is supposed to be a rotation stalwart for Cleveland for years to come.
McKenzie pitched well in two starts this year, going 0-1 with a 4.50 ERA. He struck out 15 batters in just 10.0 innings. He's battled this elbow issue, and a shoulder issue that kept him out until early June.
The 25-year-old threw 191.1 innings a season ago for Cleveland, going 11-11 with a 2.96 ERA. He's 18-22 for his career with a 3.70 ERA.
The Guardians are 41-43 entering play on Tuesday and will host the Braves at 7:10 p.m. ET.
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