DETROIT – Just when the Tigers’ injury-plagued pitching staff receives good news, another injury pops up. But with Ty Madden, the injury doesn’t seem as bad as initially feared.
“That was ugly,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said of the hard-hit line drive that hit Madden in his right forearm, forcing him out of Detroit’s series opener against Toronto on Friday.
Initial tests indicated no fracture, Hinch said, and the sight of him in the celebration line after Spencer Torkelson’s walk-off single was an encouraging sign beyond the Tigers’ 3-2 victory. Still, Madden will undergo further evaluation to confirm the severity of the injury and how long he might have to wait to throw again.
Madden, making his third appearance of the season in place of injured Casey Mize, entered in the second inning for what was supposed to be a bulk relief outing. He retired George Springer to strand two runners in the second inning, but Blue Jays rookie Yohendrick Piñango led off the third inning by sending a line drive back up the middle with a 107.9-mph exit velocity. Madden tried to react but had virtually no time before the ball came in on his right forearm.
“Oh gosh, that was scary,” Torkelson said. “Anytime you see a comebacker like that, you lose your breath for a second. Fortunately, I guess it got him in a meatier spot, I think. It could’ve been a lot worse.”
Madden not only stayed on his feet, but gathered the ball. He did not throw it as Piñango dashed down the line to first. Hinch and the Tigers’ athletic training staff came to the mound, and Madden left the game without attempting a warm-up pitch.
“I didn’t know where it hit him when I got out there,” Hinch said. “You could see him having a hard time with his arm. [Assistant athletic trainer] Kelly [Rhoades] did the test to see if you could immediately see if there was a fracture. We didn’t find anything on the field, and then you could see it start to swell up literally while we were standing there.”
It’s a tough break not only for the Tigers but for Madden, who missed all of last season with a right shoulder strain. His return was one of the bright spots of Spring Training, and he earned a return to Detroit after six appearances at Triple-A Toledo.
If Madden is out for any length of time, the Tigers could place him on the injured list to open a roster spot for Mize, who will return from the injured list to start Saturday. Detroit would still be short a starter in that case, with Mize joining Framber Valdez, Jack Flaherty and Keider Montero in the rotation.
The Tigers have been reprising their “pitching chaos” strategy and using bullpen games to fill the open rotation spot, but they ended up with an unplanned bullpen game Friday. Burch Smith and Drew Anderson helped not only keep the Tigers within striking distance but save the pitching staff, combining for six scoreless innings.
Mize is the first of several injured Tigers starters on their way back from injury, but likely not in time to fill a spot if Madden is sidelined. Troy Melton, Detroit’s rookie sensation down the stretch last year, has looked good on his rehab assignment after suffering elbow inflammation in Spring Training but isn’t eligible to return from the 60-day injured list until late this month. Justin Verlander continues to work towards a potential return from left hip inflammation but isn’t eligible until the end of the month, also on the 60-day IL. Tarik Skubal could return from arthroscopic surgery in June, but just started playing catch this week.
“It’s tough, but it is part of the game, unfortunately,” Torkelson said. “We’re going to find ways to get that next-man-up mentality and keep scratching and clawing, find ways to win with whatever we’ve got on our roster.”