KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas City Royals placed right-hander Alec Marsh on the injured list Thursday after he took a 91 mph liner off his pitching elbow the previous night against the Blue Jays, putting what had been a breakout season for him on hold.
Marsh had not allowed a run when Toronto’s Addison Barger drilled a fastball at him with one out in the fifth inning Wednesday night. The ball ricocheted off Marsh’s elbow, closer to the forearm, so hard that it left an indentation of the laces.
X-rays taken after the game showed no fractures, but the ball hit near the flexor tendon and the Royals opted for caution.
“He’s got a good horseshoe there from the seams,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said before the conclusion of their four-game series against the Blue Jays. “He can maybe go out there [for his next start], maybe not, but we just can’t take that chance with somebody that is that important to us going forward.”
The 25-year-old Marsh went into spring training fighting for a spot on the roster, but he somewhat surprisingly nailed down the final job in the rotation. He has rewarded the Royals’ faith in him by going 3-0 with a 2.70 ERA through his first five starts, and he has not allowed a run since the third inning of his start against the New York Mets on April 13.
“All is good,” Marsh said Wednesday night. “Just take it day by day.”
The Royals recalled reliever Will Klein from Triple-A Omaha to fill Marsh’s spot on the roster, and Quatraro said the club was still discussing its options for who will make Marsh’s next scheduled start Monday in Toronto.
Kansas City entered Thursday’s game having allowed the fewest runs of any team in the majors.
“[Marsh] is not going to throw today. Probably not tomorrow,” Quatraro said. “We need to see how he bounces back. We think he’s good, but again, that’s why we couldn’t take that chance that he’s not going to know until he goes out there.”