MLB injury report for Friday, June 2

Intro

MLB injury report: Friday, June 2

Chris Sale (shoulder), Boston Red Sox — Just when it seemed like Sale was dialing in to his former Cy Young self, the lefty was forced to leave his start against the Cincinnati Reds on Thursday with what’s being called shoulder soreness. Sale was visited by trainers two different times during the top of the fourth inning before being removed, finishing with one run on five hits with six strikeouts.

We won’t have an idea about whether or how long he’ll be out until MRI results come back in the next day or two, but it would be a brutal loss for a Red Sox team whose rotation has been in flux just about all year long. Nick Pivetta and Corey Kluber, both of whom lost starting roles due to ineffectiveness, would be candidates to replace Sale if he’s forced to miss time.

Carlos Correa (foot)/Byron Buxton (ribs)/Max Kepler (migraines), Minnesota Twins — It was a bloodbath at Target Field on Thursday night, as three Twins regulars exited the team’s win over the Cleveland Guardians early due to injury. The most concerning among them is probably Correa, who left in the top of the eighth after reaggravating the plantar fasciitis he’s been dealing with recently. He’s day to day for now, but given the shortstop’s struggles at the plate, it wouldn’t be surprised if Minnesota opted for an IL stint at some point soon.

Kepler and Buxton, thankfully, don’t figure to be out for too long. The former was forced to leave due to migraine headaches, while the latter took a pitch off his ribs and was pulled during the next inning. Buxton was feeling well enough to speak with reporters after the game, which would seem to bode well for a quick return.

Luis Arraez (leg), Miami Marlins — Arraez also made an early exit on Thursday night, seemingly injuring his left leg after a single in the sixth inning.

No word as of yet on the nature of the injury, but something to monitor moving forward.

Giancarlo Stanton (hamstring)/Josh Donaldson (hamstring)/Tommy Kahnle (biceps), New York Yankees — The cavalry is officially coming for New York after an injury-ravaged start to this season. Stanton, Donaldson and Kahnle were all activated off the IL on Thursday, and all of them will be available for the start of the Yankees’ showdown with the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday night.

Stanton played just one rehab game down at Double-A, so the team will almost certainly play it safe with plenty of off days and starts at DH, while Donaldson figures to get the nod most days at third base as DJ LeMahieu floats as a utility man. Kahnle, meanwhile, becomes yet another weapon for arguably baseball’s best bullpen, a true high-leverage arm when he’s healthy (which, admittedly, hasn’t been very often recently).

Kris Bryant (heel), Colorado Rockies — Bryant’s disappointing Rockies tenure has hit yet another speed bump, as the outfielder landed on the injured list Thursday with a heel bruise. It’s not believed to have anything to do with the plantar fasciitis that wiped out the second half of the former MVP’s 2022 season — manager Bud Black said it was primarily due to a string of games on artificial surfaces over the past week or two. Still, Bryant’s injury history is getting awfully long at this point, and even when he was healthy this year he was struggling mightily at the plate, with just five homers and a .374 slugging percentage in 50 games.

Triston McKenzie (shoulder)/Cal Quantrill (shoulder), Cleveland Guardians — Some good news and some bad news on the injury front for Cleveland. With Aaron Civale already set to make his return from the IL on Friday night, the team announced that McKenzie will make his season debut on Sunday. The lanky righty enjoyed a breakout 2022 but was waylaid this spring by a shoulder muscle strain, and he’ll be a huge addition to a Cleveland team that all of a sudden has the makings of a very solid rotation coming together with McKenzie, Civale, Shane Bieber and rookies Tanner Bibee and Logan Allen.

Alas, that rotation will not include Quantrill for the foreseeable future, as the righty was added to the IL on Thursday with inflammation in his throwing shoulder. He’ll receive a PRP injection in the coming days and be shut down from throwing for at least the next week or two before the team decides on next steps.

Justin Steele (forearm), Chicago Cubs — We’re not out of the woods yet, but it seems like Steele may have dodged a bullet with the arm injury that knocked him out of his start on Wednesday against the Tampa Bay Rays.

It seems like Steele’s MRI didn’t reveal any sort of structural damage in his elbow, which is a huge relief. He may yet need a brief stint on the IL if only to free up a roster spot, but hopefully he’ll be back at some point later this month. The lefty was in the midst of a breakout season, with a 2.65 ERA over 12 starts.

Jose Alvarado (elbow)/Alec Bohm (hamstring), Philadelphia Phillies — After his successful BP session on Wednesday, Alvarado has officially been cleared to head out on a rehab assignment. The lefty will pitch on Saturday at Triple-A, and could need just one more appearance next week before he’s back in the Phillies bullpen (presumably in the closer’s role).

The more pressing concern for Philly right now, however, is their depleted infield. Things were already bleak at first base without Rhys Hoskins and Darick Hall, and now Alec Bohm has been added to the IL due to hamstring tightness. Kody Clemens figures to get most of the starts at the cold corner against righties, but the team has been unwilling to play him against lefties really at all, and it remains to be seen what the plan might be. There’s not yet a timetable for Bohm’s return.

Michael Brantley (shoulder), Houston Astros — Well this is a sight for sore eyes:

Brantley looked like he was on the verge of making his season debut last month, only to be shut back down and sent away from the team due to a setback that the team refused to actually call a setback. There wasn’t much known about the veteran outfielder’s status for the last couple of weeks, but he reemerged on Thursday afternoon having a catch and hitting off a tee in a workout at Minute Maid Park. It’s still way too early to think about a timetable for return, but before the All-Star break seems unlikely at this point.

Wade Miley (lat), Milwaukee Brewers — It seems like the wily lefty might be able to beat his initial 6-8 weeks prognosis.

Miley has already resumed throwing, and from the sound of it, a bullpen session doesn’t seem far off. He could be back before the end of the month if all goes well, which would be a huge boon to a struggling Brewers rotation.

Carson Kelly (forearm), Arizona Diamondbacks — Out basically all year with a fracture in his right forearm, Kelly finally began a rehab assignment on Thursday night. Top prospect Gabriel Moreno has been coming into his own lately and will likely see plenty of starts at catcher, but Kelly could also DH in addition to spelling the rookie behind the plate.