After two injury wrecked seasons the Twins have been remarkably healthy so far, but their lone significant injury has provided a glimpse into the same question health marks that got the head trainer fired this offseason.
Backup outfielder Darin Mastroianni injured his ankle late in spring training, but instead of simply placing him on the disabled list to begin the season the Twins kept him on the active roster. He was too limited to actually do much, but they used him as a pinch-runner and defensive replacement.
Then, after appearing in eight games without logging a single plate appearance, the Twins deemed Mastroianni healthy enough to start two games in center field. Shortly after that he was placed on the DL and diagnosed with a stress reaction in his ankle. Initially the Twins said he’d be out three weeks, but that came and went with Mastroianni still in a walking boot and now he’s expected to miss six more weeks following surgery.
Key detail from Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com: “He initially sustained the injury when he fouled a ball of his ankle in spring training and aggravated the injury while running early in the season.”
