Elvis Andrus Scratched From Action

Elvis Andrus has been shut down for at least two games, including tonight's game against the Chicago Cubs, due to what is being deemed at the current time as forearm soreness.

Earlier in Spring Training, Andrus missed four games due to the same issue, and at the time, it was also determined to be regular wear-and-tear from preseason workouts and games. However, it is worrisome that the problem apparently never fully went away, and comments from Ron Washington don't really do a whole lot to calm any fears of a more serious problem.

I haven’t seen the zip on it (throws). I thought we were past it, but it flared up on him again (Monday) night.

Forearm sorness, of course, is a very vague description that could refer to anything from normal muscular soreness or, in more serious cases, a problem with the ulnar collateral ligament. While the latter is normally seen more often in pitchers, the St. Louis Cardinals lost Rafael Furcal to Tommy John surgery in 2013.

With the current rash of injuries running through Major League Baseball and the news yesterday that Jarrod Parker of the Oakland A's will miss the season due to Tommy John surgery, it's fairly easy to find ourselves jumping to conclusions.

While the prospect of Elvis Andrus missing any kind of significant time would leave the organization shuffling guys around and determining a variety of playing time scenarios using various players, I'm not of the mind to wrap my head around that thought right now, and would rather hinge on the hope that this is perhaps a more precautionary move in order to make sure that nothing bleeds over to the regular season.