MLB injury report for Friday, April 28

Intro

MLB injury report: Friday, April 28

Aaron Judge (hip), New York Yankees — It seemed like New York dodged a bullet when Judge was able to stay in Wednesday’s game against the Minnesota Twins after his awkward slide into third base. One day later, though, the entire tristate area is holding its breath after Judge was pulled in the fourth inning of the Yankees’ game with the Texas Rangers.

“Right hip discomfort” is the official diagnosis from the team, and while it stems from that slide on Wednesday, thankfully Judge doesn’t seem too concerned.

Some combination of Oswaldo Cabrera, Franchy Cordero, Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Aaron Hicks will handle outfield duties this weekend, which is music to the ears of any Texas pitcher.

Tyler Mahle (elbow), Minnesota Twins — Mahle’s debut with the Twins last season was cut short due to a shoulder injury, and now it appears the righty is dealing with some sort of elbow strain — “right posterior elbow soreness,” to be precise. Mahle was pulled after four solid innings of work against the Kansas City Royals, and now he’ll go through the usual battery of tests and hope to avoid anything long-term.

It’s an inopportune time for an injury to the Twins’ rotation, because ...

Kenta Maeda (elbow), Minnesota Twins — MRIs on the pitcher’s elbow showed nothing structural, and Maeda thinks it’s just the sort of arm fatigue that can occur when coming back from Tommy John surgery. Regardless, Rocco Baldelli thinks it’s “likely” that the righty will wind up on the IL, and given his struggles so far this year and his diminished velocity during his last start, that stint may well be lengthy one.

With Maeda and Mahle likely sidelined for the foreseeable future, Bailey Ober and Louie Varland would be the ones to get the call from Triple-A to fill those spots in the rotation.

Justin Verlander (shoulder), New York Mets — Start booking flights to Birmingham, Mets fans:

Verlander will finally pitch in a Minor League game this afternoon, and the former MVP is only expected to need the one tune-up start before he makes his Mets debut. That will likely cost Jose Butto or Joey Lucchesi their spot in the rotation.

Liam Hendriks (cancer treatment), Chicago White Sox — Having already beaten cancer, the next step for Hendriks will reportedly be a check-in with team doctors next week to see when he might go out on a rehab assignment. That’s still no small hurdle — and that assignment would likely be a lengthy one after the righty missed the whole spring — but tremendous news nonetheless. Reynaldo Lopez, Kendall Graveman and really the entire White Sox bullpen has been a disaster so far this year, so the closer’s job should be his whenever he returns.

Tim Anderson (knee), Chicago White Sox — Anderson’s rehab assignment, on the other hand, will begin today in Triple-A Charlotte, and the shortstop isn’t expected to need more than a handful of games to knock the rust off before he returns.

Will Smith (concussion)/J.D. Martinez, Los Angeles Dodgers — An update on a pair of key cogs in L.A.’s lineup:

Roberts said “there’s a chance” that Smith could be activated prior to Friday night’s game now that the catcher is symptom-free, but he’s also been away for a while and the team wants to be careful easing him back in. Martinez, meanwhile, seems like he might need an IL stint for the back injury that’s kept him out all week.

Taijuan Walker (elbow), Philadelphia Phillies — It seems like Walker and the Phillies somehow averted disaster, as the righty is already back playing catch and won’t even need to undergo an MRI for the elbow ailment that ended his last start prematurely. Keep an eye on it, but the team seems confident he’ll make his next start.

Wil Myers (illness), Cincinnati Reds — Myers has missed time recently with both neck and back issues, but he’s wound up on the injured list with an unspecified illness. It’s the COVID IL, not the 10-day IL, meaning he can be activated at any time, although we don’t actually know what’s ailing Myers at the moment. The outfielder has struggled mightily in his first season in Cincinnati outside of that one two-homer game a couple of weeks ago, but given how invested the Reds are in flipping him at the trade deadline he’s not at risk of losing playing time.

Yoan Moncada (back), Chicago White Sox — We finally got some more specifics on what’s keeping Moncada on the IL, and it’s not great: The third baseman has a protruding disc that’s pinching a nerve in his back. The team doesn’t think surgery will be required, but that obviously sounds painful, and a rehab assignment still isn’t in sight. Jake Burger will continue to start at the hot corner in the meantime, and he’s shown some intriguing power.

Kerry Carpenter (shoulder), Detroit Tigers — Look, we never support any kind of injury, but if you’re going to hurt your shoulder, at least do it like this:

Carpenter was later removed from the game after robbing Ryan Mountcastle’s would-be go-ahead homer, and the team is calling him day to day as they await test results. Carpenter has been among the lone bright spots for the Tigers’ offense, slugging .439 with four homers in 19 games.

Raisel Iglesias (shoulder), Atlanta Braves — Iglesias began a rehab assignment on Thursday night at Triple-A Gwinnett, recording one strikeout and throwing 12 pitches in a clean inning of work. Iglesias will likely need a few more outings after missing most of the spring, but he’s not far off — and it’s not a moment too soon after his replacement, A.J. Minter melted down again in a brutal loss to the Miami Marlins.

Carlos Carrasco (elbow), New York Mets — Carrasco threw his first bullpen session since being sidelined by a bone spur in his elbow, and reports were positive. Granted, he said he was feeling great physically after every start despite clearly diminished velocity, so take that with a grain of salt. There’s still no timetable for when he might go on a rehab assignment, but figure some time in mid-to-late May if everything goes well.

Ranger Suarez (elbow), Philadephia Phillies — A sight for sore eyes for Philly fans.

Suarez made his first rehab appearance for Double-A reading on Thursday, walking one and throwing 27 pitches over two innings of work. He’ll probably need at least two or three more outings before he’s back with the big club, but his elbow is reportedly feeling fine and his velocity was near normal.

Jonathan Loaisiga (elbow), New York Yankees — The hits just keep on coming for New York. Aaron Boone told reporters that Loaisiga has been shut down after feeling discomfort in his elbow following a throwing session on Wednesday.

Obviously that doesn’t sound great. Michael King will be the next man up behind closer Clay Holmes (and may eat into Holmes’ share of save chances).

Tarik Skubal (elbow), Detroit Tigers — Skubal is officially back throwing off a mound for the first time since he underwent surgery to repair his flexor tendon last summer. Up next should be several bullpens and live BP before an eventual rehab assignment, putting the lefty on track to return at some point before the All-Star Game. Skubal enjoyed a mini-breakout last year, but given how woeful the team around him is, he’s not a recommended fantasy stash.

Domingo Acevedo (back), Oakland Athletics — Acevedo was officially activated off the IL on Thursday after missing a couple weeks with a back strain. He was very solid for the A’s bullpen last season, and given the state of things regarding Trevor May, Dany Jimenez and Jeurys Familia, he’s not a bad speculative add in deeper leagues for owners that need a possible path to saves.

Adam Wainwright (groin), St. Louis Cardinals — Next stop for Wainwright: Durham, where he’ll make a rehab start for Triple-A Memphis on Sunday. He’s slated to throw around 90 pitches, and if that goes well, he should be back in the Major League rotation at some point next week.