SAN DIEGO — The scuffling Texas Rangers placed ace Nathan Eovaldi on the 15-day injured list Sunday with a right forearm strain and recalled right-hander Grant Anderson from Triple-A Round Rock.
The move was made retroactive to July 27. Eovaldi and manager Bruce Bochy both said they expect the right-hander to be ready to go when he’s eligible to come off the IL.
Eovaldi had an MRI recently and threw a bullpen when the AL West leaders were in Houston, “and toward the end of it it, it just didn’t feel right,” he said Sunday. The All-Star described it as “an achy feeling that just doesn’t feel normal” on the outside of his elbow.
He last made a start on July 18 against Tampa Bay and had his next start pushed back twice. At one point he thought he’d start Sunday against the San Diego Padres.
Instead, he landed on the IL.
“I kind of expected it,” Eovaldi said. “We ended up throwing another bullpen when we were in Houston and it just didn’t feel as good as I was hoping for. Where we are, the timing of the season and everything like that, we feel like this isn’t something I needed to be grinding through or battling through. We’ll take the time, whether it be a week or two, go from there and be ready for the postseason and the end of the season.”
Eovaldi (11-3, 2.69 ERA) will be evaluated by the team’s medical staff after the Rangers return to Texas following this series. The Rangers had lost six of eight games.