Steer 'not quite' where he wants to be with lingering shoulder injury
Mark Sheldon
@m_sheldonGOODYEAR, Ariz. -- The Reds hoped that Spencer Steer's problematic right shoulder would have improved enough to begin throwing this week. That remains on hold however, because the infielder/outfielder is still experiencing discomfort.
¡°He¡¯s just not quite where we want him to be," manager Terry Francona said. "We¡¯ll get him examined one more time and figure out what path we¡¯re going.¡±
Because it doesn't hurt him to swing, Steer has been limited to being the designated hitter in games, including Thursday's 3-3 tie against the Diamondbacks at Goodyear Ballpark. He went 1-for-2 with a sharply lined two-out single to left-center field in the fifth inning.
¡°At least I can hit. Shoulders are tricky," Steer said before the game.
Steer feels a pinch in his shoulder when throwing but multiple MRI exams have revealed no structural damage. He was originally scheduled to start playing catch on Monday.
¡°We¡¯ve been doing a ton of rehab on it," Steer said. "It¡¯s just taken longer than we thought to get to this point. I¡¯m just trying to get over the hump to where I feel like I'm in a spot where once I start throwing, I don¡¯t have any setbacks and we kind of go full-go. It¡¯s been a frustrating process but I feel like we¡¯re doing the right things and we¡¯ll get there.¡±
Steer is scheduled to be examined some time this weekend by team orthopedist Dr. Andrew Razzano before any decisions or timelines are set.
Over 158 games in 2024, Steer batted .225 with a .721 OPS, 20 home runs and 92 RBIs while primarily playing left field and first base. He was bothered by shoulder soreness throughout.
Entering camp, the club expected to give Steer looks at both first base and third base. The outcome of his situation could affect others with Jeimer Candelario and Christian Encarnacion-Strand also working at both corner infield spots. Gavin Lux has been in the mix to play third base as well.
¡°I want to be fair to him," Francona said of Steer. "I know he played last year through the whole season with it. I don¡¯t doubt that he couldn¡¯t do it again. I¡¯m trying to be fair to him. We¡¯re trying to knock this out so he can go play.¡±
News and notes:
? Lux played his previous two games at third base but hasn't been tested much with only one ball hit to him thus far. Francona still thinks the games have been useful for Lux, who has played one big league game at third base during his career.
¡°There¡¯s been baserunners where it¡¯s first and second and a kid was trying to steal. That was new to him," Francona said. "There¡¯s things that are happening even when you don¡¯t get the ball, positioning-wise and just paying attention to the game that has been helpful.
¡°There¡¯s always something going on. Even just getting used to viewing the field from a different angle and where to go when the ball is hit and stuff like that.¡±
? Reds starting pitcher Graham Ashcraft pitched two-plus innings vs. Arizona and allowed one earned run, one hit and two walks with three strikeouts. Ashcraft, who threw 43 pitches with 22 strikes, exited in the third inning after a leadoff double and a walk, which led to a run.
¡°I felt good," Ashcraft said. "The slider was a lot better today. That was kind of the main focus, get back on top of it and get it in the zone where it was the shape that we liked and it was a lot better than the other day."
Following a 1-2-3 first inning, Ashcraft navigated through some traffic in the top of the second. Geraldo Perdomo reached on second baseman Matt McLain's one-out fielding error. On next batter Jose Herrera's comebacker, Ashcraft committed his own error trying to start a double play with a bad throw to second base but escaped with two outs and the bases loaded.
¡°When the bases got loaded, I was kind of like, ¡®All right, let¡¯s go.' This is what it¡¯s like in the season when [it] hits the fan," Ashcraft said. "You kind of have to adjust. I was able to make the adjustments and keep them from scoring.¡±