Welcome to the Fantrax MLB Injury Report for Wednesday, June 5, 2024. In today’s edition, the entire state of Texas is in dire straits right now. Cristian Javier is having Tommy John Surgery, Alex Bregman and Kyle Tucker are hurt from pitches, and Evan Carter is being shut down. It’s a mess for both teams who have been managing their injuries all season long. That being said, there’s more to this report outside of the Lonestar State. Read it all here in today’s MLB Injury Report from Fantrax.
MLB Injury Report for Wednesday, June 5, 2024.
Cristian Javier – SP Houston Astros (Tommy John Surgery)
Astros starter Cristian Javier will undergo Tommy John surgery on Thursday, source tells @TheAthletic. Story here – https://t.co/qBwNmnqUjP
— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) June 4, 2024
Javier has been dealing with forearm discomfort for the last little while and this confirms his future. This is a brutal blow to an already depleted Astros rotation that is missing other pieces. There is a chance he could return late in the 2025 season, but the likelihood of that is minimal. Expect to see him pitch again at the beginning of the 2026 season.
Spencer Arrighetti – SP Houston Astros (calf contusion)
Spencer Arrighetti’s leg started to tighten and he had trouble finishing some of his pitches, forcing his exit from tonight’s game. He said he should be able to make his next start
— Adam Spolane (@AdamSpolane) June 5, 2024
Arrighetti was able to make it through the third inning of yesterday’s game but had to leave because of the pain. It’s unclear if this is anything more than a bruise, but the team should have updates at some point today or tomorrow. The fact that he feels confident in him making his next start is a good sign, but more clarity will be presented as time goes on. The team needs pitching desperately right now.
Alex Bregman – 3B Houston Astros (hand)
Alex Bregman just got hit in the left hand with a 93.3 mph sinker. He is remaining in the game for now.
— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) June 5, 2024
The good news is that Bregman was able to stay in the game. He had x-rays done and the results were negative. He could miss a day or two in order to get back to 100% health.
Kyle Tucker – OF Houston Astros (shin)
Astros manager Joe Espada tells @SportsMT that Kyle Tucker is not in today's lineup and that he is "still day to day." Tucker will see doctors today to make sure everything is OK, but Espada said he is feeling better.
— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) June 4, 2024
The thing worth monitoring here is his visit with the doctors. There’s a chance that something significant comes out of that meeting. Otherwise, he’s likely to return within a day or two.
Evan Carter – OF Texas Rangers (back)
Bruce Bochy with “not great news” on rookie outfielder Evan Carter. Bochy said Carter will be out for about a month or more.
“It’s a little worse than we thought. It's not a stress fracture, I think we’re calling it a stress reaction.”
— kennedi landry (@kennlandry) June 4, 2024
Back injuries are tricky in that they’re different for everyone. With it being worse than what was originally thought, the hope is that being shut down for a few weeks will help the healing process. Whether or not that will work is up for debate, but we won’t know anything until that period of rest is complete. He will undoubtedly need a long rehab assignment when he is ready to play again.
Max Scherzer – SP Texas Rangers (back, arm), Jon Gray – SP Texas Rangers (groin)
– Max Scherzer threw a live batting practice today of about 40 pictures. When asked if he was encouraged, Scherzer said he “checked a box” and hopes to go on rehab soon.
– Jon Gray threw a bullpen, also of about 40-50 pitches. He’ll find out more about the plan later today
— kennedi landry (@kennlandry) June 4, 2024
Scherzer has cleared these hurdles before but has needed to take a few steps back in order to let his body catch up to him. The hope is that the team has learned their lesson and he can take things slowly, despite the team’s need for pitching. As for Gray, while the plan has yet to be released, there are murmurs of him actually starting for the Rangers this weekend.
Tyler Mahle – SP Texas Rangers (elbow)
Tyler Mahle will face hitters tomorrow, per Bruce Bochy. It’ll be the first of four live batting practice sessions for him as he rehabs from Tommy John
— kennedi landry (@kennlandry) June 4, 2024
This is a big step forward for Mahle, who, if he clears this, could start a rehab assignment in the near future. Of course, that depends on how he feels after each live BP session.
Sean Murphy – C Atlanta Braves (elbow)
Sean Murphy initial X-rays were negative. Day to day.
— Justin Toscano (@JustinCToscano) June 5, 2024
An unlucky turn of events for Murphy, who just returned from an early-season oblique injury. The hope is that he won’t miss much time and attempt to help the ailing Braves. He himself expressed optimism that he wouldn’t need the Injured List, but time will tell.
Gerrit Cole – SP New York Yankees (elbow)
Gerrit Cole finishes his outing with his 5th strikeout of the evening and leaves to a standing ovation from the Somerset crowd
Final line: 3.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K, 45 pitches pic.twitter.com/LdivVvz5Tz
— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) June 4, 2024
This was about as good an outing as anyone could have wished. He felt great afterward and he hit 97 mph on his fastball. He threw all of his pitches for strikes and didn’t hold anything back. Expect a few more of these types of outings before returning sometime in June.
Ranger Suarez – SP Philadelphia Phillies (hand)
Ranger Suárez played catch. “It looks good so far,” Rob Thomson said. Suárez has a bullpen tomorrow. Still trending to start in London. He gave a thumbs up and snorted at me like a pig.
— Matt Gelb (@MattGelb) June 4, 2024
The progress of Suarez is something to monitor, but so far, so good.
Andres Munoz – RP Seattle Mariners (back)
Andrés Muñoz has been dealing with a lower back issue, which flared up during the collision. Scott Servais said that he’ll undergo an MRI.
— Daniel Kramer (@DKramer_) June 5, 2024
Munoz collided with Max Schuemann, and the belief was that he had injured his ankle or knee. It turns out that this was a lingering issue that has been with him for quite a while. It has been a few years since he’s had back issues, so this is hopefully an isolated and minimal incident, but the MRI should reveal more. Stay tuned.
Jack Flaherty – SP Detroit Tigers (back)
Jack Flaherty was in a lot of discomfort talking to us after the game. Still, he's optimistic that he won't miss his next start. With off-days, he will get a couple extra days to rest, get treatment and heal
— Chris McCosky (@cmccosky) June 5, 2024
Flaherty expressed optimism after the game that he would make his next start. He said that he couldn’t fully extend himself on his pitches because of the stiffness, but didn’t seem overly concerned. He felt that being pulled was the right choice so as to not make whatever pain he was feeling even worse, as he felt himself get locked up. The team has two off days soon (Thursday and Monday), so it may be a full week before his next scheduled start. Additionally, they could always push him back a day too, so there’s a lot of time left before he’s set to take the mound again.
Trevor Williams – SP Washington Nationals (flexor strain)
With Williams being shut down for two weeks from throwing, the team will be better able to determine their next steps following this time off. The good news is that there is no structural damage, as the team was bracing for the worst. Instead, they have the same injury here that Josiah Gray suffered earlier in the season. Chances are that they use that as a model for how to handle the recovery of Williams.