MLB Injury Update Today: James Paxton leaves Astros game early with calf strain; River Ryan shut for rest of the season with elbow injury and more

We are under two months away before the 2024 MLB regular season winds up as teams prepare themselves for October. However, some of these teams faced setbacks with some pitching injuries coming to the fore over the weekend games.

Boston Red Sox's ace James Paxton exited the game early while the Dodgers received a disappointing blow to one of their starters. Let's pick the corners of injuries:

#1. James Paxton exits game vs Astros due to calf injury

James Paxton put stress on his calf while attempting to make a play at first on a grounder by Yordan Alvarez in the first inning of the game against the Houston Astros on Sunday. He had to be limped off the field by the Red Sox medical staff.

"I felt like I got kicked in the calf. Then, I kind of turned around, took another step and I felt it again," Paxton said after the game. "I was like: 'It's not good. It's my calf.' I felt it pop."

"He'll get an MRI [Monday]," Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. "We'll see where we're at. Tough one. He's been healthy the whole season."

This was James Paxton's third start since his trade from the Dodgers ahead of the trade deadline.

#2. Dodgers hit yet another setback with River Ryan ruled out for the season

In the fifth inning of Saturday's game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, River Ryan was seen grimacing in pain, resulting in Dave Roberts taking him out as a precautionary measure. However, after further scans, the LA Dodgers manager announced on Monday:

“I don’t know the exact diagnosis, but his season is going to be over,” Roberts said via MLB.com. “I think they’re waiting on some other scans to figure out the exact course of action. Obviously right now, what I can say is his season is going to be over.”

For now, the Dodgers medical team and River Ryan will decide whether the right elbow injury requires Tommy John surgery. This adds to the injury pile among Dodgers starters this season.

“I think that we clearly don’t have the answers to taking care of pitchers and keeping them healthy,” Roberts added. “I think the industry is doing the best they can to manage workload, manage pitch count, but clearly, we don’t have it nailed. … It’s just unfortunate, because a lot of great talent is on the IL.”

Walker Buehler who has pitched some rehab assignments is expected to take his place in the rotation on the next turn.

Other injury news

Yankees catcher Jose Trevino played a rehab game on Sunday, going 0-for-1 with a walk against Binghamton while catching five innings behind the plate.

Justin Verlander made his rehab start on Saturday, throwing three innings for Triple-A Sugar Land against El Paso (Padres). He allowed one run on two hits, walking two and striking out three.

Mookie Betts is expected to feature in the series opener against the Milwaukee Brewers on Monday. He will hit second behind Shohei Ohtani after coming off a fractured left-hand injury. Betts has been out of action since mid-June, losing his leadoff spot to the Japanese phenom.