Injuries take their toll on the Tigers’ season

There’s no such thing as an injury free season, and the Tigers certainly aren’t alone in the ongoing plague of injuries that haunt their clubhouse. But going into tonight’s first game against the Texas Rangers, the Tigers will be short one key player.

Both Ian Kinsler and Miguel Cabrera sat out Sunday’s game against the Minnesota Twins, and while Kinsler is still feeling sore after his hit-by-pitch from Saturday’s game, he’ll be returning to the lineup Monday. Cabrera, however, will not be.

The first-baseman, who has been showing signs of pain all season, both on the field and in the box scores, was expected to return for the Rangers series, but will be sitting out at least one more game. He texted manager Brad Ausmus Monday morning to tell the skipper his back had tightened up again, and it was decided he would not play. Whether this will require an MRI or further medical treatment currently remains to be seen, and Ausmus was tight-lipped on what measures had been taken thusfar.

Cabrera will remain day-to-day until it is determined if he requires a more extensive trip to the disabled list — something the Tigers may seriously want to consider, given their playoff contention has all but faded.

As for Kinsler, he was still showing signs of swelling in his wrist, but felt up to the task of playing.

Tonight also marks the return of Michael Fulmer from his stint on the 10-day disabled list. As the ulnar issue he’s experiencing only flares up when he pitches the team has taken a “we’ll see how it goes on the field” approach and have returned him to the regular rotation rather than sending him down to Triple-A Toledo for a rehab start.

Time will tell how these injuries play out, but there is certainly good reason to keep a watchful eye on all three of these players going forward.