Season from hell continues for Cincinnati’s TJ Friedl
He’s injured, still.
TJ Friedl made a brilliant, diving catch in centerfield for the Cincinnati Reds during their game against the Pittsburgh Pirates on June 17th, though in doing so he managed to injure his right hamsting. He exited the game immediately, but the ultimate prognosis and recommendation was that he would not need a trip to the injured list.
Instead, he sat out until June 21st, recently wrapping up a weekend series against the Boston Red Sox in which he went 2 for 14 and never really looked right. That was likely due to the fact that his hammy was, in fact, injured enough for him to need a trip to the injured list, and that’s precisely what happened on Monday afternoon.
The Reds sent him to the IL and called up Levi Jordan for his first big league action.
The #Reds today selected the contract of IF/OF Levi Jordan from Triple-A Louisville and placed on the 10-day injured list OF TJ Friedl (right hamstring strain). pic.twitter.com/SqcPuyIE2m
— Cincinnati Reds (@Reds) June 24, 2024
On top of the weeklong stretch he just spent playing at less than full strength, Friedl will now be shut down for two additional weeks before ramping back up, as Charlie Goldsmith of The Enquirer relayed.
David Bell said TJ Friedl was playing at about 80-to-85%. “Maybe it got worse on Sunday. He couldn’t play how he needed to.”
— Charlie Goldsmith (@CharlieG__) June 24, 2024
Bell hopes that Friedl will be back in 2-to-3 weeks.
After breaking his wrist in spring training (also on a diving catch) and busting a finger after a HBP, this will mark Friedl’s third trip to the IL in 2024. He’s played in just 26 games so far this season after leading the Reds in both bWAR and fWAR last season, and it’s worth pointing out that the Reds combined OF tally of 0.7 fWAR from all players who’ve played out there this season is the fourth lowest among all MLB clubs this season.
It’s yet another hammer blow to the team’s once-lauded depth, and one they’ll be hard-pressed to overcome seeing as they’re already in last place in the division and the trade deadline is looming just five-plus weeks away. It’s also that much more egg on the face of a training staff that’s come under serious question lately, with the undiagnosed wrist issues plaguing Christian Encarnacion-Strand earlier this season already in the wake of their mishandling of Jonathan India’s leg issues during the 2023 season.
One thing is for certain, at least - if the Reds don’t rally the troops and turn this mess around immediately, this is fixing to be a lost season for them all, not just for TJ.