Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Clay Buchholz left his start against the New York Yankees on July 10 with an elbow injury and is headed to the disabled list.
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Buchholz MRI Reveals No UCL Damage
Saturday, July 11
Rob Bradford of WEEI reported Buchholz will has been added to the disabled list after undergoing an MRI, though the test revealed no ligament damage. Buchholz’s UCL is in good shape, but he’ll take a week off of throwing, according to Tim Britton of the Providence Journal.
The official diagnosis is a flexor strain, according to Ian Browne of MLB.com. When asked whether or not Buchholz will pitch again this season, manager John Farrell said, “at this point, it’s not a question,” via Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald.
Gordan Edes of ESPN noted Nationals pitcher Doug Fister had the same injury and missed a little over a month before he returned.
Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal noted Buchholz has never experienced elbow issues before, though he has battled shoulder and knee problems in recent years.
The Red Sox pitcher had given up one run on six hits against the Yankees before he was forced to leave the game with one out in the fourth inning, as Baseball Tonight announced:
MacPherson reported he went “straight into the clubhouse” upon leaving the field with a trainer and was replaced by Robbie Ross Jr.
Buchholz has struggled since the Red Sox won the World Series in 2013. In that season, he went 12-1 in 16 starts with a 1.74 ERA, earning the second All-Star appearance of his career. His ERA ballooned to 5.34 in 2014, as he went 8-11 in 28 starts.
Buchholz has steadied the ship this season, going 7-6 with a 3.26 ERA and 107 strikeouts before the elbow injury. He has just 25 fewer punch-outs than he did last season despite pitching in almost 60 fewer innings this year.
Boston does not need any additional problems with its pitching staff, as it’s already thin with Buchholz as the Red Sox ace. Sitting at the bottom of the American League East, Boston has been surging toward a challenge for the division, winning 10 of its last 14 games. The Red Sox sit only 5.5 games behind the division-leading Yankees despite being in last place.
Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com
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