Tigers place Javier Baez on 10-day IL with thumb soreness

The Tigers placed shortstop Javier Baez on the 10-day injured list due to right thumb soreness. The placement is retroactive to April 13. The Tigers will play a man short in Saturday’s game with the Royals and add a new player to the active roster before Sunday’s contest. Willi Castro looks like he’ll be the replacement, as the Triple-A Toledo Mud Hens announced that Castro was scratched from today’s lineup.

Baez has missed four games with this nagging thumb problem and twice between scratched from the starting lineup. This would seemingly indicate that the injury isn’t too severe, and while X-rays were negative, the issue ultimately proved bothersome enough for the team to just put Baez on the IL. Between the retroactive placement and Monday’s off-day on Detroit’s schedule, Baez is eligible to return during the Tigers’ series with the Rockies next weekend.

After signing a six-year, $140M deal during the offseason, Baez has gotten off to a good start in Motown, hitting .316/.350/.526 in his first 20 plate appearances as a Tiger. Harold Castro has been filling in at shortstop in Baez’s absence and will likely continue to get the bulk of the work, though the switch-hitting Willi Castro will also get some action after his probable call-up.