After already placing Jean Segura on the 10-day injured list earlier today, the Marlins have sent another notable player to the IL. The Miami Herald’s Jordan McPherson (Twitter link) reports that the Fish have placed Edward Cabrera on the 15-day IL due to a right shoulder impingement, with the placement retroactive to June 14. Right-hander Huascar Brazoban has been called up from Triple-A in the corresponding move.
Tapped by many as a possible breakout candidate for the 2023 season, it has been an up-and-down year for Cabrera, with his inflated 14.1% walk rate and 17.3% home run rate contributing to much of this inconsistency. While Cabrera generally does a good job of keeping the ball on the ground (53.7% groundball rate), his big flies have yielded a lot of damage, as his homer rate is the sixth-highest of any hurler in the league with at least 60 innings pitched. The result is a 4.70 ERA, despite Cabrera’s impressive 28.9% strikeout rate.
Cabrera joins Trevor Rogers and Johnny Cueto as projected rotation stalwarts currently on the injured list, with Rogers and Cueto each on the 60-day version of the IL. The nature of Cabrera’s shoulder problem isn’t yet known, as an “impingement” could describe a more serious concern or just a minor issue that would allow Cabrera to return in the minimum 15 days. The right-hander already missed around seven weeks of the 2022 season due to elbow tendinitis, as well as a minor ankle sprain that sent him to the IL at the very end of the season.
The Marlins had slated Cabrera to start Monday’s game against the Blue Jays, so the club doesn’t have long to decide on a replacement. A bullpen game is one option, or the Fish On First blog (Twitter links) notes that Jeff Lindgren or Chi Chi Gonzalez could be called up for a spot start, as both pitchers are on a normal amount of rest between outings for Triple-A Jacksonville. Neither Lindgren or Gonzalez are on the 40-man roster, but Avisail Garcia could be moved to the 60-day IL to create space.