Injury Report 5/16 - Middle Infield Banged Up

Brandon Phillips suffered what is being described variously as a sprained toe or turf toe in the Reds' game on May 12.  He missed two games but returned to the lineup on May 15.  BP has played through more serious injuries than this many times in the past, and often to unfortunate results.  Let's hope that this injury is quickly placed in the rear-view or at least does not hobble Phillips to the extent that we have seen before.  For what it's worth, he did not look good at the plate or especially in the field in Friday's game, so it might be an injury that Price and Phillips have to monitor.  If Kris Negron continues to warm up at the plate, the lack of backup options at 2B will become less of a reason to have Phillips play through an injury in a season that doesn't appear competitive for the Reds anyway.  Though we do know that BP prides himself on being a "gamer," he also stated that he doesn't want to hurt the team.  Tom Groeschen of the Enquirer offers the following:

"I'm going to see what happens," Phillips said before [Friday's] game. "If it doesn't feel right, then I'm going to be quick to pull myself out real quick. I don't want to give us a handicap out there. If I can't do my job, I'll make sure that I man up (and come out)...  I love being on the field regardless if I'm 100 percent or not," Phillips said. "I feel like that I'm pretty good enough to really find a way to get it done. Hopefully I can do that."

We've got both sides of the coin one after another here, so we will see how the injury affects BP's playing time and his performance, if at all, going forward.

Zack Cozart, semi-famed for being Phillips' only double-play partner of any tenure ever, has also been dealing with day-to-day type injuries over the past weeks.  On May 3, Cozart was hit on the wrist by a pitch but did not come out of the game at that point.  Later in the same game, he split a fingernail on his throwing hand trying to field a ground ball and had to be removed.  He returned to the lineup 6 days later and played both games of a double header.  Since returning, he has hit .381/.440/.667, continuing his torrid start to the season, so it appears that the injury is not bothering him at all.

I forgot to mention in the last injury report that Manny Parra is on the 15-day DL with a strained neck, and has been since April 23.  He threw only 3.1 innings before being sidelined, and the bullpen could certainly be improved by his return.  I also failed to notice that Jason Bourgeois was even still on the Reds' MLB roster this year, and is on the 60-day DL with a fractured left shoulder.

In the minor leagues, at AAA Louisville, IF Josh Satin was placed on the 7-day DL on April 25 and missed 13 days with an undisclosed injury.  OF Steve Selsky and RP Matt Magill were both placed on the 7-day DL on May 8.  Magill had Tommy John surgery and will therefore miss the rest of the season, though the Reds cannot open his 40-man roster spot, just as they are stuck with Donald Lutz in the same situation.  It's an unfortunate rule that perhaps could use some tweaking, as the Reds basically have to work with a 38-man roster for the rest of the year.  OF Bryson Smith was placed on the DL on May 13 with a strained right forearm.

At AA Pensacola, SS Zach Vincej was placed on the 7-day DL on April 25 and missed the minimum with an undisclosed injury, C Yovan Gonzalez was placed on the DL on April 28 and missed 11 days, and 1B Sean Buckley was placed on the DL on May 2 with a strained oblique.

At A+ Daytona, IF Avain Rachal was placed on the 7-day DL on May 2 with a strained abdominal muscle and returned after the minimum time.  At A- Dayton, OF Narciso Crook was placed on the DL on May 8 with a strained left hamstring.

As ever, the Reds' injury situation can be checked at your convenience via the link.