D-backs RHP Mike Leake has fracture in non-throwing wrist
Feb 13, 2020, 9:27 AM | Updated: 9:28 am
(Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images)
Arizona Diamondbacks starting pitcher Mike Leake has a fracture in his left wrist, he told reporters at spring training on Thursday.
Leake, a right-handed pitcher, said he still expects to be ready for Opening Day, which is a home game on March 26 against the Atlanta Braves. Because he’s a righty, the fracture in his left wrist will not prevent him from throwing while he recovers, as The Athletic’s Zach Buchanan reported.
The pitcher missed Wednesday’s workouts, the first official day of spring training, with wrist soreness and underwent an MRI.
The 32-year-old believed it was an old fracture that he aggravated recently while chasing his dog, multiple reporters said.
If Leake is in fact ready for Opening Day, the D-backs may not have to dip into their pitching depth at all in the wake of this injury. But Arizona does have the luxury of a deep list of options should it need them, including Alex Young, Jon Duplantier, Taylor Clarke and others.
Last season, after a trade from the Seattle Mariners, Leake pitched 10 games for the Diamondbacks and registered a 4.35 ERA in that span with a 1.367 WHIP. He also won a Gold Glove Award at the end of the season following 197.0 total innings pitched between the Mariners and D-backs.
The D-backs’ first spring training game is on Feb. 22, still more than a week away.