Rays' Cobb (forearm tendinitis) will miss Opening Day start
DUNEDIN, Fla. -- Tampa Bay Rays right-hander Alex Cobb has tendinitis in his throwing forearm and will miss his scheduled Opening Day start, the team announced Wednesday.
Cobb, 27, left his start Tuesday against the Philadelphia Phillies in Clearwater, Florida, with right forearm tightness after three innings and 32 pitches. He was expected to throw about 60 pitches. An MRI was done later in the day.
"It's never easy to know you're going to have to take a step back and delay your process in getting ready for the season," Cobb said. "I just kind of look at it from the outside-in that this situation could be a lot worse, and there's a lot more difficult situations that could have come from a sore elbow. It's not the worst-case scenario.
"I can't pinpoint what went wrong and how this happened. Tendinitis is just such a natural occurrence in your body that it really could happen at any moment. Maybe I threw a little bit too much off the mound. Maybe I threw too many pitches in bullpen sessions."
Rays manager Kevin Cash said he spoke to Cobb on Tuesday night and that the pitcher was "in good spirits." Cash said Cobb would rest for four to seven days before being re-evaluated.
"We'll just keep monitoring it, we'll get with the trainers, obviously, this morning and throughout the rest of the next couple days," Cash said before the Rays played the Toronto Blue Jays on Wednesday afternoon at Florida Auto Exchange Stadium.
"There are some moving pieces. But, like we've said the whole time, we like the guys we have in camp. We like the pitchers that we brought in to compete for that fifth spot, and it just seems like now there's more chance for somebody to step up for us. So we'll keep monitoring it. There are some unknowns, but that's part of it. We'll just kind of adjust on the fly."
Cobb's injury is the latest blow to a rotation that has become strained. Left-hander Matt Moore, who had Tommy John surgery last April, isn't expected back until June at the earliest.
Right-hander Alex Colome, who's a favorite to win a rotation spot until Moore returns, was delayed in reporting to spring training because of visa issues in the Dominican Republic, and then after his arrival in Port Charlotte, Florida, he was hospitalized late last week because of pneumonia. Left-hander Drew Smyly, gained in the trade involving David Price last July, is dealing with tendinitis in his throwing shoulder and may miss his first scheduled regular-season start.
Matt Silverman, the Rays' president of baseball operations, said observation of Cobb's status will determine steps to come with this latest issue involving Tampa Bay's rotation. Silverman said he hopes that Cobb can return sometime in April. An Opening Day starter in Cobb's place was not named, though right-hander Chris Archer figures to be a favorite.
"We're going to observe him over the next week or so, and we'll have a more definitive timetable for him after that," Silverman said of Cobb. "But we do know that he won't be ready for the start of the season. And hopefully, we'll get him back not too long thereafter.
"Injuries are a part of the game. You hope that when you have those injuries, you get to space them out. We don't have the luxury of spacing them out. … For the first couple of weeks at least, it will be a real test of our depth."
Added Rays third baseman Evan Longoria: "It's tough. But I think the obvious answer is that we've got to keep rolling with the guys that we have. We've continued to find ways to win and proven we can deal with guys that haven't been with us. So we're going to have to find a way now. Cobb is obviously one of the leaders of the staff. I know that even though he won't be available right away, he's going to be there to help those guys along, the guys that are there. I'll try and do the same thing. You get behind the 8-ball, and you figure out which guys are willing to step up and do some things that maybe weren't expected of them."
With another health development hampering the Rays' rotation, Archer and right-handers Jake Odorizzi and Nathan Karns are expected to be part of the new-look group to start the regular season. Also in consideration for rotation spots are right-handers Burch Smith and Matt Andriese, plus left-handers Enny Romero, Mike Montgomery and Everett Teaford.
"It sucks that we're not going to have Alex, because he's a key part to the nucleus of our team," Archer said. "It's just going to be an opportunity for somebody to step up and possibly make a name for themselves, just like Cobb did when he first came up, Moore did when he first came up and even myself and Odorizzi."
"Any injury is a blow, but obviously losing a guy for a year is that much bigger," Cash said. "So we're going to get on this and do everything we can to make sure we prevent any of those guys from having that happen."
For Cobb, there's disappointment that he'll miss his anticipated Opening Day start. Still, he knows his situation could be worse.
"From a personal standpoint, I'm extremely disappointed in that," Cobb said of the lost Opening Day opportunity. "I was really excited to kind of take on that honor and be able to take the ball the first day and try to set the tone."
You can follow Andrew Astleford on Twitter @aastleford or email him at aastleford@gmail.com.
