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Brandon Lowe was expected to the return to the Rays this weekend following a rehab stint with the Durham Bulls, but after leaving last night’s game with a leg injury, Kevin Cash today said that Lowe is done for the season.
Lowe was recovering from a right shin bone bruise that he had suffered earlier this season on July 2nd, and following rehab games with the GCL Rays and Charlotte Stone Crabs, was sent to Triple-A Durham for the final leg of his rehab.
In his second game with the Bulls, Lowe suffered a new injury, hurting his left quad while trying to run down the line to beat out an infield grounder, as shown in the video below.
On pace for five-win season, Lowe was having a very strong rookie campaign for the Rays, slashing .276/.339/.523 in 76 games with a 127 wRC+ and fWAR of 2.5. Lowe’s numbers were good enough to put him in contention for the AL Rookie of the Year before his season was cut short.
Lowe will join third baseman Yandy Diaz as crucial players that will be on the shelf for the remainder of the season. Joey Wendle, who was rehabbing alongside of Lowe, would be likely to take Lowe’s place in the depth chart but there are some bumps in his rehab, too:
#Rays Cash said Wendle was still feeling the wrist issue playing for AAA @DurhamBulls last night, will get treatment today and may take a day off, likely will have to deal with it rest of season, shouldn't need to be shut down
— Marc Topkin (@TBTimes_Rays) August 21, 2019
I guess you really can never have too many middle infielders.