HOUSTON -- With his left oblique bothering him anew, Tigers second baseman Gleyber Torres went back on the injured list Wednesday, retroactive to Tuesday. His second strain in the oblique came just two weeks after he’d been activated from the IL, having missed a month with the same injury.
“It’s a new injury in the same region of his previous injury,” manager A.J. Hinch said before Wednesday’s series-ending 4-2 loss to the Astros. “Obviously, it’s all related, but it’s frustrating for him and for us that that area continues to be an issue for him.”
Torres, who is slashing .280/.395/.395 this season, left Monday night’s series opener after swinging at a pitch during his second at-bat. It was during his first swing of the previous at-bat that he noticed something was amiss.
“It’s so weird. I felt so good, especially the night before the game,” Torres said Wednesday. “I felt like I’ve been playing really good. I try to not be emotional, but at this moment it’s kind of hard.”
In the 11 games he played after returning June 2, Torres slashed an impressive .341/.413/.585 with two home runs and seven RBIs.
“It’s a challenge to lose a bat the caliber of Gleyber’s,” said Hinch, whose team concluded a 1-4 road trip. “There’s no doubt it’s a tiring broken record, but we can’t dwell on it.”
Torres’ absence will likely mean more playing time for Hao-Yu Lee. Hinch said Zach McKinstry will also get opportunities at second and that Colt Keith could see more time in the infield.
Taking Torres’ roster spot was right-hander Casey Mize, who had been on the IL with right adductor inflammation. Mize started Wednesday, surrendering three runs on six hits and a walk in 4 2/3 innings. He struck out three.
“A lot of three-ball counts was probably the issue more so than anything,” said Mize, who said he felt fine physically during his 86-pitch outing (52 strikes). “There were a few where it went from 0-2 to 3-2 to them reaching base, which is frustrating. That’s been unlike me. Just a little out of whack today.”
The Tigers managed only three hits and trailed 4-0 before getting their first run in the seventh on Kerry Carpenter’s opposite-field homer to left off Peter Lambert. Kevin McGonigle also went oppo to left against Josh Hader in the ninth.
In regard to Torres, Hinch said the latest oblique injury doesn’t appear as severe as the previous one, and the manager is holding out hope his second baseman’s absence will be relatively short-term.
“We just have to continue to address the symptoms and build a return to play that makes sense,” Hinch said. “His first injury was tough because we were taking a step forward, then a mini-step back and then another step forward. And then he came off the IL and hit [one of] the first pitches he saw 433 feet to center [for a home run against the Rays] and had probably 20 at-bats of really explosive action.”