Injury Report: Bour on 15-day DL, to return after All-Star break

As we enter July, the Miami Marlins have been fortunate to avoid serious injuries to their budding stars. While nagging injuries have periodically handicapped the Marlins’ trio of talented outfielders, they have avoided the disabled list and continue to produce. Marcell Ozuna in particular has been a revelation, despite occasionally suffering from a sore wrist. At the beginning of the season, I stressed the importance of the Marlins remaining healthy due to their lack of depth. So far, so good.

In fact, only three players on the original 25-man roster currently reside on the disabled list. Two of them, Carter Capps and Bryan Morris, were considered key relief pieces, but the bullpen has stepped up tremendously in their absence. Furthermore, the new addition of Fernando Rodney bolsters the Marlins' back-end relief, even if you don’t agree with the trade.

However, the Marlins did suffer a key injury last week: Justin Bour. Below I will discuss the latest news on Bour with updates on the Miami Marlins' injury-related transactions.

DL Transactions

• Carter Capps - 60-day DL
• Bryan Morris - 60-day DL
• Justin Bour - 15-day DL retroactive to July 3

Justin Bour

Bour appeared to injure his ankle during a close play at first base on Saturday in the sixth inning against the Atlanta Braves:

Justin Bour who tweaked his left ankle on that close play at first, is now out of the game. Chris Johnson playing first. #Marlins

— Joe Frisaro (@JoeFrisaro) July 2, 2016

Bour had an MRI on Tuesday, and it was determined that he suffered a right ankle sprain. This means that the ligaments that support Bour's right ankle have been strained/torn.  It is most likely that Bour injured the lateral ligaments on the outside of his ankle. Don Mattingly indicated as much when he discussed the injury with Joe Frisaro:

It was the outside of his leg that he drug behind him, and it got twisted. He felt something on the side of his leg.

There are three different grades of ankle sprains:

• Grade 1 - Stretching of individual muscle fibers with the possibility of small tears. There will be mild tenderness/swelling around the ankle. The typical recovery time is 2-4 weeks
• Grade 2 - Ligaments are stretched further, with more extensive tearing. There is mild tenderness/pain around the ankle, and there is abnormal looseness of the ankle joint. The typical recovery time is 6-8 weeks.
• Grade 3 - Most or all of the ligament is torn/ruptured. There is substantial instability in the ankle. The typical recovery time is 12 weeks - 6 months

Hopefully, the sprain is not serious and Bour can return shortly after the All-Star break. It is difficult to predict the severity of the injury without more information, but ankle sprains are tricky. They reoccur quite frequently so Bour will need to be completely healed before he begins to run on it.

Concluding Thoughts

The Bour injury will certainly handicap the Marlins, as he has provided power from the middle of the lineup. We will need to wait until after the All-Star break to have a true read on how serious the ankle sprain is.  However, regardless, the Marlins have been remarkably healthy this season, helping them become contenders.

What a stark difference from previous years.