5 MLB Injury Storylines To Watch This Week

When Will Chris Sale, Trevor Story Return From Hand Injuries?

Red Sox lefty ace Chris Sale suffered a proximal phalanx fracture in his left pinkie finger after taking a comebacker in Sunday’s loss. 

Second baseman Trevor Story hasn’t played since suffering a right hand contusion after being hit by a pitch on Tuesday. 

Story is already on the 10-day IL and Sale will ostensibly be placed on the 15-day IL soon, but the Docs are optimistic he can avoid the 60-day list and return in a few weeks from the fracture. 

Boston finished the first half at 48-45, 16.5 games back in the AL East and two games behind the Blue Jays for the third AL Wild Card spot. 

What Is The Next Step For Yordan Alvarez, José Altuve? 

Astros’ all-star slugger Yordan Alvarez took swings in the batting cages on Sunday for the first time since being placed on the 10-day IL with hand discomfort last weekend, according to the Houston Chronicle’s Danielle Lerner.

The Pro Baseball Docs continue to believe that Alvarez will undergo surgery to remove the likely damaged hook portion of his hamate bone. 

Even without surgery, which has a 6-to-8 week recovery period, the 24-year-old will miss upwards of a month to rest and rehab the worsening hand injury that has caused a dip in his mammoth stats this season.

José Altuve, meanwhile, will skip the All-Star game with a left leg contusion he suffered after being hit by the first pitch of the game on Thursday night. 

The Docs are confident that Altuve will be good-to-go after the break with no lingering effects. 

Will The All-Star Break Help Trout Heal His Ailing Back?

Angels’ star centerfielder Mike Trout decided to bypass the All-Star Game on Tuesday as he continues to nurse upper-back spasms. 

Trout was a last-minute scratch on Saturday afternoon, his fifth consecutive missed game since leaving Tuesday’s contest in the fifth inning after striking out swinging twice. 

The Pro Baseball Docs said earlier this week that Trout’s back spasms shouldn’t be a lingering issue and it’s realistic to expect him to return to the lineup after the break.

Trout has been in the middle of a slump lately but is still producing at a high level, batting .270 with 24 home runs, 51 RBIs and 55 runs in 79 games this season.

Trout joins Bryce Harper, Fernando Tatis Jr., José Altuve, Yordan Alvarez, Jacob deGrom, Walker Buehler, and multiple other star players who will miss the All-Star festivities due to injury. 

White Sox Blue-Chip Outfielders Sidelined At The Break

The oft-injured White Sox were without starting outfielders Luis Robert and Eloy Jiménez in their final two games of the first half. 

Jiménez is dealing with right leg soreness only eight games removed from his return from a torn right hamstring. He isn’t expected to go to the IL and the White Sox have maintained since the beginning of his rehab that leg soreness is a normal phenomenon.

Luis Robert left Friday’s game with light-headedness after appearing to mishandle a ball in centerfield early in the contest and didn’t play on Saturday or Sunday. Robert is second on the White Sox in games, at-bats, runs, and WAR, and is one of only four batters to play in 70 games and one of five batters with 250 at-bats.

Can 42-Year-Old Albert Pujols Win The HR Derby?

Future hall-of-famer Albert Pujols is set to participate in the All-Star Game and HR Derby this week to celebrate his final season.

Pujols is the overwhelming underdog to win the contest, according to FanDuel Sportsbook, which has him listed at +2300 to win, +600 to make the final, and +240 to beat Kyle Schwarber in the first round.

Pujols hasn’t been to the IL this season but hasn’t been an everyday player in his 22nd season, hitting six home runs with 20 RBI in 53 games.