Rays' Springs exits vs. Red Sox with ulnar neuritis in left arm
Tampa Bay Rays starting pitcher Jeffrey Springs was forced to leave Thursday's outing against the Boston Red Sox in the top of the fourth inning with ulnar neuritis in his throwing arm, according to Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times.
Springs looked at his left hand and elbow and shook his hand several times after delivering a pitch to Justin Turner, Topkin notes.
Jeffrey Springs was removed from the game after showing discomfort throwing a pitch pic.twitter.com/W1gYv4mLvd
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) April 13, 2023
Tampa Bay manager Kevin Cash said postgame that the Rays are hopeful that Springs is only dealing with ulnar nerve irritation, but the pitcher will undergo imaging when he visits a doctor on Friday, per Topkin. Cash added that he expects Springs to end up on the injured list regardless.
Losing Springs would be a huge blow to the Rays' rotation. The 30-year-old has been a revelation in the early portion of the season, posting a 2-0 record with a minuscule 0.56 ERA and 24 strikeouts in 16 innings across three starts.
The Rays have started the season an incredible 12-0 despite being without starter Tyler Glasnow as he recovers from an oblique injury. The club also placed right-hander Zach Eflin on the injured list earlier this week due to back tightness.