The Boston Red Sox don't need more headaches to deal with at this point in the season, but they got one in what was otherwise a well-played 8-6 win on Monday over the Detroit Tigers.
In the third inning of that win, starting pitcher Sonny Gray felt his hamstring grab on a pitch and exited the game promptly after shaking his head on a warm-up offering. In the hours after the game, we learned that the 36-year-old righty, who has dealt with similar issues in the past, will undergo an MRI to determine the severity of the injury.
Gray gave a glass-half-full perspective on the injury once the contest had wrapped up, but he certainly didn't rule out a trip to the injured list as the Red Sox remained in the information-gathering phase.
“I can honestly say it doesn’t feel like it’s a horrible thing,” Gray said, per Chris Cotillo of MassLive. “It’s just something that’s going to take however long it’s going to take to get right. I don’t know what that is right now.”
Gray was making his fifth start of the season on Monday and wound up allowing one earned run with two strikeouts in 2 2/3 innings. His ERA for the season stood at 4.30, and the Red Sox moved to 3-2 in games he's started.
The Red Sox will likely need at least one fresh arm for Tuesday's series opener with the New York Yankees after getting 6 1/3 innings from their bullpen on Monday. If Gray is placed on the injured list, that transaction becomes a matter of simply calling someone up to take his place. If Boston thinks he can make his next start, or perhaps only skip one start, they can instead option Jack Anderson or Zack Kelly to Triple-A.
Either way, Gray's injury is an unwanted variable in the middle of a rough April, which could turn on a dime in either direction with a good or bad series against the Bronx Bombers.