Guardians Injuries: Ben Lively makes return to mound, Shawn Armstrong looking at extended absence

Sometimes the baseball gods giveth, and sometimes they taketh away. 

As Ben Lively made his return to a big league mound over the weekend for the first time since last year’s Tommy John surgery, Shawn Armstrong suffered a non-contact calf injury that could keep him out for the rest of the season. 

Here’s what to know about both injuries.

Ben Lively took a huge first step in returning to big league action 

The Guardians signed Lively to a two-year minor league contract in the offseason so they’d be able to provide him an avenue to rehab last year’s Tommy John surgery while not taking up a roster spot. 

After undergoing surgery last June, Lively spent most of last summer at the team’s Arizona Complex as he worked to build his arm strength back up. His quest to build that arm back up took him to Progressive Field’s mound two weeks ago for a live bullpen, and it took him to Fort Wayne over the weekend for a rehab start with High-A Lake County. 

Although the results were rough (he allowed eight runs in one inning), a level of rust was only going to be natural given it was his first time throwing in a game scenario in more than a year. 

In total, he threw 32 pitches (23 strikes) with seven hits and one walk. 

While it seems like a lot to expect Lively to pitch for the Guardians later this year, the fact that he’s back pitching in an affiliated game is still a great sign. The results don’t matter as much right now. 

Shawn Armstong calf injury is going to keep him out for a significant period of time 

Almost every non-contact injury ends up being significant and Armstrong’s is no exception, as Vogt told reporters on Monday that Armstrong’s injury is a “moderate to high” calf strain while saying the club is determining how long he’ll be out for. 

It’s hard to imagine that Armstrong returns at any point this season given how fickle calf injuries can be. 

Not only does Armstrong’s injury change the makeup of the Guardians’ bullpen, but it also could change their deadline plans given there’s no better time to add a reliever. 

The good news for the Guardians is that there are plenty of relief options who will be available at a discount.

So, instead of dipping into the talent pool that could help them grab a right-handed bat (like Angel Genao), they could get an Armstrong replacement with a prospect who is ranked in the back-half of their top-30 list. 

Still, Armstrong’s injury obviously hurts given the amount they invested in him in the offseason.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow