Danny Salazar injury update: How long will Indians starter be out?

The Cleveland Indians seem headed for the postseason, barring a sudden collapse, but starting pitcher Danny Salazar’s arm injury is clearly not good news.

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Something was clearly not right with Cleveland Indians pitcher Danny Salazar Monday night, as he allowed six runs on six hits while lasting only two innings. After the outing he acknowledged that there’s “something” in his elbow, and he’s slated for a precautionary MRI on Tuesday.

Talk of a pitcher with a possible elbow issue always comes with speculation about eventual Tommy John surgery, though a firm medical diagnosis is obviously yet to come for Salazar. But he has acknowledged his elbow has been bothering him since before the All-Star break, with results to back that up.

Over his last five starts, dating back to July 4, Salazar has a 7.88 ERA while allowing seven home runs and 35 hits allowed over just 22 innings. He was bothered by shoulder fatigue in early June this year, with elbow soreness that prevented him pitching in the All-Star Game, and he underwent Tommy John surgery back in 2011. Salazar has dismissed any similarities to the elbow pain he experienced back then, but that is to be expected. Also as expected, Salazar’s velocity has dropped recently.

Indians’ manager Terry Francona had this to say regarding Salazar, via MLB.com:

"“He obviously doesn’t look like himself the last couple games,” Francona said, according to MLB.com. “So what we’re going to do is we’re going to get him looked at tomorrow, mostly, I hope, just for his peace of mind. Hopefully, nothing, and then we can move forward, and I think Danny can relax a little bit, and if there’s a need to look at it further, we can.”"

Indians’ pitching coach Mickey Callaway added his own concern, citing that Salazar does not look like he’s having fun pitching. While that is not necessarily a reflection of a physical issue by itself, it’s notable that someone who works closely with Salazar has noticed a change in demeanor.

Despite his recent drop-off, Salazar’s overall numbers this season are still very good (11-4, 3.38 ERA, 133 strikeouts and 51 walks over 117.1 innings). The Indians have a strong starting rotation, but being without Salazar for any length of time would severely dampen things for them down the stretch.

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