Paredes out indefinitely with bruised left wrist

March 4th, 2016

SARASOTA, Fla. -- Jimmy Paredes was sporting a plastic cast on his left wrist in the clubhouse on Friday morning, and the outfielder said he's not sure how long he will be out.
The team announced that Paredes underwent an MRI to determine if there was any soft tissue damage. It came back negative, and the official diagnosis was a bruised wrist.
"I don't know how long it will take for me to be ready," Paredes said. "I'm a little sad, because I came into the spring with the opportunity to make the team. We'll see later."
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Paredes suffered the injury in the second inning Thursday while trying to catch a blooper by Tampa Bay's Logan Forsythe. His wrist awkwardly bent back when he slid to try to catch the ball, which ended up being a double. He was immediately removed from the game and sent back to Sarasota, Fla., for X-rays. Paredes, who played winter ball in the Dominican Republic to get some more outfield work, was understandably disappointed about the injury.
"I tried to do the best I can to do a good job," Paredes said. "I know that's what they're looking for. I want to help the big league [team], to get a win for the city."
Manager Buck Showalter said, "It's going to be a while," before Paredes is ready to return. The skipper did not want to rule out that the utility player would miss the rest of spring.
Matusz has lower back strain
Orioles left-hander Brian Matusz was diagnosed with a right serratus (lower back) strain. Showalter wasn't sure about the extent of the injury, but he said Matusz would "probably" be on the disabled list if the injury happened during the regular season.
"We would probably have waited a couple days to see if it's the same," Showalter said. "We'll see what develops in the next couple days."
Matusz pitched in Wednesday's Grapefruit League home opener, surrendering a homer to Braves outfielder Mallex Smith in his one inning of work.
Matusz was projected to be an integral part of Baltimore's Opening Day bullpen.
Extra bases
Showalter said that pitcher Yovani Gallardo would throw a batting-practice session on Saturday. Chris Tillman will follow suit on Sunday.
Tyler Wilson will start for the Orioles in the early split-squad game in Fort Myers, Fla., against the Twins. Joining him will be Odrisamer Despaigne, Parker Bridwell, Chris Lee and Andy Oliver.
Kevin Gausman will start the home game against the Rays. He will be joined by Zach Britton, Mychal Givens, Darren O'Day, Todd Redmond and Dale Thayer.