Bruce Chen has been scratched from today’s scheduled start and may not be able to pitch this weekend either because of a swollen disk in his back that has the Royals left-hander in what he described as “constant pain.”
Andy McCullough of the Kansas City Star reports that the swollen disk is pressing against nerves and causing “pain shooting down his leg.” He received an epidural injection to ease the swelling.
McCullough writes that “Chen has been managing this condition for weeks,” which helps explain his 7.45 ERA in four starts after the Royals re-signed the 37-year-old to a two-year contract this offseason.
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