Sonny Gray will miss Opening Day with lat strain

Looking to return to form after a down year, Sonny Gray could start the season on the disabled list.

Two trips to the disabled list and diminished fastball velocity made 2016 a nightmare for Cy Young candidate Sonny Gray. Now, it appears his 2017 season is not off to a much better start. After feeling discomfort in his last start, a two-inning, seven-run dud, the A’s starter has been diagnosed with a strained lat.

Gray has still never had a major structural elbow or shoulder injury in his career, but the continued minor muscle strains are taking their toll. He went just 5-11 last season with a 5.69 ERA. The right-hander was only effective in the month of June, where he was able to string together five starts with a 3.23 ERA over 30.2 innings. This disappointing year came on the heels of his third-place finish in the 2015 AL Cy Young vote.

For the Oakland A’s, seeing Gray on the shelf for another extended period has to induce plenty of anxiety over his status going forward. It’s likely he could miss the entire first month of the season now as he rehabs from the strain and then ramps back up to take the mound in the big leagues. Oakland has very little quality depth backing up Gray in the rotation and are already staring down another rebuilding season.

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There’s another reason for the A’s to be worried over this latest setback for Gray. His value to the franchise at this point is in his trade potential. The A’s are still a few years away from contending in a difficult division that keeps getting better at the top.

Gray is still a few years away from free agency, but the A’s likely would have moved him at some point in the future. If he is able to recover and regain his Cy Young form, Oakland could still fetch a good package for him, but the continued health questions make that look more unlikely by the day.