Mason Miller, the A’s All-Star closer and perhaps their most valuable trade candidate, is heading to the injury list with a broken left hand.
The rookie right-handed reliever fractured the fifth metacarpal in the pinky of his non-throwing hand after Monday night’s win over the Houston Astros, according to Martín Gallegos of MLB.com. It was initially unclear how Miller suffered the fracture, but Gallegos later clarified that Miller “put his hand down awkwardly on the training table while getting ready to do an exercise.”
Miller has been placed on the 15-day injured list retroactive to Tuesday. He pitched a perfect ninth inning on Monday to seal the A’s 4-0 win over the Astros.
Miller is in the middle of a sterling season, posting a 2.21 ERA with 15 saves and 15.5 strikeouts per nine innings. He is a potential trade-deadline acquisition for contending teams in need of an elite closer, though ESPN’s Buster Olney recently reported that he appears unlikely to be moved by next Tuesday’s trade deadline.
The A’s have not given a timeline for Miller’s return, but a metacarpal fracture typically takes at least three to four weeks to heal, according to the British NHS.
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