The injury bug has been meandering its way through the Detroit Tigers locker room over the past few days, and Leonys Martin is the latest victim.
Prior to tomorrow’s game the @tigers will make the following roster moves:
– Place OF Leonys Martin on the 10-day DL with a left hamstring strain.
– Recall OF Mikie Mahtook from Toledo.— Tigers PR (@DetroitTigersPR) May 9, 2018
Martin joins Miguel Cabrera, Alex Wilson, Jordan Zimmermann and Daniel Norris on the disabled list. The team’s starting center fielder this season, Martin was held out of the lineup in last night’s game.
“It’s a strain in the back of the hammy, and it’s a situation where if you let him try to play through it, it could definitely pop,” manager Ron Gardenhire told MLB.com. “It’s tender, and it’s got some swelling in it. They have to do treatment on him and get this straightened out, because he’s in a dangerous spot right now with this hamstring. It could blow, so we’re shutting him down.”
For the season, Martin has been a very pleasant surprise. Through 32 games, he is carrying a .294 average from the lead-off spot in the lineup, with five home runs and 15 RBI’s. After only playing 49 big league games last season, and finishing with a .172 average with just three home runs, Martin was brought into Detroit on a one year contract worth$1.75 million.
http://gty.im/943509546
Replacing Martin’s spot on the roster will be a familiar face: Mikie Mahtook. Since his demotion to the Toledo Mud Hens, Mahtook has played in 22 games. His average is only sitting at .250, but his bat has heated up a bit lately. In his last 10 games, he’s hitting .343, with an OPS (on base percentage plus slugging percentage) of 1.100. He has also hit three home runs, and has driven in nine runs.
Mahtook started the season with Detroit, but after a 4-31 start to the seasons, he received the demotion to Toledo.
Gardenhire also said that Martin should be ready to make his return to the lineup when he is eligible to do so, which will be on May 18th.
