Following a May 8 MRI, Eugenio Suárez is about 50% better as he continues his recovery from a left oblique injury, Cincinnati Reds manager Terry Francona said.
And how do they know the value of Suárez’s improvement can be quantified as “about 50%?”
“They went to school for a long time,” Francona joked. Francona went on to explain his understanding of how doctors and team personnel arrived at that number.
In practical terms, what’s happened recently with Suárez is that he took 50 lighter-strength swings in the batting-cage on May 7. As of May 8, he decided he’ll scale back the swinging while continuing fielding and base-running, Francona said. The hope is that reducing his quantity of swings will encourage faster healing,
Suárez said his cuts in the batting cage were at about 60%-70% strength.
“I don’t feel anything. That’s why we’re going to look at it (May 8) and see how it’s (looking),” Suárez said. “If it looks good I might go harder than that. That’s the plan.”
Suárez participated in fielding drills prior to the Reds’ May 8 home game against the Houston Astros.
“He’s allowed to (swing) today,” Francona said. “I think by his own − he thinks maybe if he cools it for a few days, maybe that’ll help.”
In the interim, Suárez will continue fielding and base running work, and the Reds will continue on minus their marquee offseason free-agent signing. Suárez hasn’t seen the field since he was scratched from the Reds-Tigers game April 24 with the oblique ailment.
Cincinnati went 4-2 on that homestand through April 30, and then hit the road for a seven game road trip that saw the club go 0-7 and suffer more key injuries.
The injury is a new experience for Suárez, who said he’s never had an injury in his entire career like the one he’s currently battling.
“Never. This is the first time I’ve had something like that in my career. Never had it before,” Suárez said. “It feels very weird to me because I never had it. At the same time, I enjoy the process, and I’m doing my best to be back soon and working hard to be back strong.”
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Reds’ Eugenio Suárez is ‘about 50%’ better. Terry Francona explained how
Reporting by Pat Brennan, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
