Key member of Guardians' rotation lands on IL at inopportune time

When it rains, it pours. The Cleveland Guardians are simply unable to catch a break when it comes to their pitching staff. Veteran starter Alex Cobb has been placed on the 15-day injured list with a fractured fingernail.

Talk about bad timing. Cobb had been scheduled to start on Wednesday when the Guardians take on the Yankees in New York, but obviously, that is now off the table. Cleveland will now have to scramble to try and find someone to take his place on short notice, a task that is not enviable for anyone at all, considering who their opponent is.

It is clearly a far from ideal set of circumstances, but the fact it is only a nail fracture rather than a serious injury is at least somewhat encouraging. Sure, having a fractured fingernail at this moment in the season is not something anyone would wish for, but it is a lot better than a serious major injury.

Cobb settled in his last outing after having a rough debut against the Minnesota Twins in his first start, allowing four runs (five total) in 4.2 innings. He was able to rebound by giving up just one run on three hits over 5.2 innings against the Chicago Cubs during Cleveland's three-game sweep. The improved performance from his first to second start provided hope that he would be the difference-maker in the rotation the Guardians needed, but they will now be forced to wait again for him to return.

Cleveland's rotation has been a revolving door all season, and this latest injury to Cobb will make it revolve at least one more time. The Guardians have managed to get by with what they had so far, but there is this feeling that it is only hanging on by a thread. Cobb having a brief stay on the IL while the other arms in the rotation pick up the slack is the clear best-case scenario here. Cleveland just needs to keep their heads above water while Cobb is down and hope they can get the most out of the remaining starting pitchers.