DENVER -- Rockies right-hander Tomoyuki Sugano will have his next start delayed because of a breakage of the nail on his right middle finger. Righty Tanner Gordon is expected to return from almost a month on the injured list with a right hip impingement to replace Sugano and start Tuesday against the Marlins.
Sugano (8-4, 4.80 ERA), who does not need to go to the injured list and likely will make his next start during a home series against the Giants this weekend, said the cut opened Friday night, when he gave up seven runs in five innings of the Rockies’ wild, 9-8 road loss to the Twins.
“It started bothering me during my last outing – it kind of bled a little bit,” Sugano said through interpreter Yuto Sakurai. “It was a little different in terms of weather conditions from here versus Minnesota. It was more humid there. So it was a little easier for it to get cracked and bleed.
“It happens sometimes. It just happens every season. I just want to make sure I take precautions.”
Gordon (0-1, 6.37 ERA in nine games/two starts) last pitched on May 31, when he yielded four runs and six hits in three innings of a home loss to the Giants. Gordon, who worked in long relief before joining the rotation, said it was prudent to rehab the injury before it worsened.
Last Wednesday, Gordon pitched four scoreless innings and gave up one hit in a Minor League rehab outing for Triple-A Albuquerque against Salt Lake.
The Rockies were expected to officially announce Gordon as Tuesday’s starter after Monday night’s game against the Marlins.
Lefty reliever Welinton Herrera (Rockies No. 14 prospect) has had a follow-up exam on his left elbow, and is expected to undergo Tommy John surgery as early as Wednesday. Herrera debuted with three scoreless appearances before going to the injured list.
Manager Warren Schaeffer also said that center fielder Brenton Doyle (left oblique contusion), will continue his injury rehab assignment at Albuquerque with a full game in the lineup Tuesday at Round Rock, followed by a full game as designated hitter Wednesday, then be evaluated for a return. Doyle missed games on Friday and Saturday because of groin tightness.
During the weekend, the Rockies ended a rehab assignment for outfielder Jordan Beck and optioned him to Albuquerque. Beck opened the season as a regular in the outfield corners, but struggled to a .183 average with one home run and 10 RBIs before the injury. The right-handed-hitting Beck was 3-for-44 (.068) against right-handed pitchers.
“He’s been out a long time and he needs to get [at-bats],” Schaeffer said. “We definitely see him as a part of the future and a mainstay in the lineup against right and left, and he hasn’t gotten that here this year. If he came up right now, he wouldn’t get that right now.
“It’s good for him to get everyday at-bats down there … so when he’s completely ready, he can come back and help us.”