Adolis Garcia and Max Scherzer of the Rangers are out of Game 3 due to injury.
PHOENIX (AP) — Adolis Garcia of the Texas Rangers will have imaging on his left torso after gripping it and departing Game 3 of the World Series on Monday night after a swing in the eighth inning. Garcia’s injury occurred after the Rangers’ Game 3 starter, Max Scherzer, left the game in the fourth inning with a back spasm.
The injuries ruined an otherwise excellent night for the Rangers, who won 3-1 against the Arizona Diamondbacks to take a two-game lead in the World Series.
Garcia, the American League Championship Series MVP who won Game 1 of the World Series with an 11th-inning home drive, has been the best player in baseball this postseason. After the game, there was some concern in the Rangers’ clubhouse about Garcia’s potential to return before the end of the Series, especially if the imaging revealed a core muscle strain, which generally needs more than a week of recuperation.
“We’re being optimistic there,” Rangers manager Bruce Bochy said, “but we’ll know more [Tuesday].”
Scherzer stated that his deadline is Wednesday at the latest. He felt a twinge in his back on a slider he threw to Arizona’s Evan Longoria, the No. 8 batter, in the third inning of Game 3. The discomfort had evolved into something more by the time Scherzer exited the inning, his third shutout of the night.
Scherzer, who said his back was “locked up,” compared it to four years ago, when he missed his scheduled Game 5 World Series start due to a serious neck condition. By the time Game 7 rolled around, Scherzer’s neck had relaxed, and he began – and won – the game.
“I’ve had it last a little bit longer and I’ve had it clear in 48 hours, get better, significantly better, in 48 hours,” Scherzer said in a statement. “I’m not sure where we are. I need to know how terrible this is and if the medications can help.”
Arizona outfielder Alek Thomas hit a comebacker in the second inning that ricocheted off Scherzer’s elbow, though Scherzer maintained the injury and his back cramping up were unrelated.
“I was feeling pretty good,” he explained. “I was finally feeling like I was going to get deep into a game, get some rhythm, and get going here, and then I had a little spasm.” As a result, it’s aggravating.”
Texas could replace Garcia, Scherzer, or both on the roster, but doing so would rule them out of the World Series. Scherzer missed approximately six weeks due to a shoulder injury and was activated prior to the ALCS alongside Jon Grey, his teammate pitcher who replaced him in Game 3 and earned the victory.
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