Padres outfielder Tommy Pham estimates he’s at 80% strength after he was stabbed in the lower back last October, he told reporters (including Dennis Lin of the Athletic and Bob Nightengale of USA Today). The 32-year-old opened up about the incident, telling reporters he initially believed he would never play again. Scarier still, Pham says doctors later told him he could have been killed or paralyzed by his wound, which ultimately required more than 200 stitches to close, per Nightengale. Fortunately, he’s on the path to recovery and played in the Padres’ first spring training game on Sunday, although he says he’s still not at his previous weight-lifting capabilities. In addition to the stabbing, Pham underwent an offseason surgery to correct a wrist issue, but it seems he’s recovered from that procedure.
More injury-related situations around the game:
- Brewers right-handed pitching prospect Dylan File underwent surgery to repair a stress fracture in his throwing elbow, team personnel told reporters (including Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and Adam McCalvy of MLB.com). The surgery is expected to keep him out of action until at least the middle of June. File was added to Milwaukee’s 40-man roster over the offseason. Considering File's recovery timetable, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Brewers place him on the 60-day injured list if a need for a 40-man spot arises in the coming weeks.
- Rangers reliever Joely Rodríguez is “a couple of weeks behind” schedule of the Texas' other relievers, president of baseball operations Jon Daniels told reporters (including Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News). The southpaw was bothered by an offseason ankle issue; he’s now pain-free, but the injury delayed his ramp-up before spring training. It remains to be seen if he’ll have enough time to build up before Opening Day. Rodríguez was a bright spot in limited time with Texas last season, striking out 17 while issuing five walks across 12.2 innings of three-run ball.
- The Angels announced that pitching prospect Packy Naughton has a Grade 1 flexor pronator strain, per Fabian Ardaya of the Athletic (Twitter link). He’ll be out of action for three to five weeks. There was some concern for the left-hander after an MRI revealed a UCL sprain on Saturday but it seems he’ll avoid the worst-case scenario. Naughton was acquired from the Reds in advance of last summer’s trade deadline and could be a big league option for the Halos at some point in 2021.
- Another of the Angels’ acquisitions at the 2020 trade deadline, right-hander Gerardo Reyes, left Sunday's spring-training contest with discomfort in his throwing elbow, per a team announcement. The 27-year-old reliever came over from the Padres in the Jason Castro deal. Reyes has a 7.62 ERA/3.38 SIERA over 26 MLB innings.
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