The 28-year-old first baseman is out for the remainder of the season after suffering a right wrist injury on July 26 against the St. Louis Cardinals.
Just when it seemed like things could not get any worse for the Cincinnati Reds after losing starting pitcher Hunter Greene to season-ending Tommy John surgery, the team has taken yet another crushing blow with Spencer Steer slated to miss the remainder of the season as well following a wrist injury he suffered on July 26.
In a conversation with the Cincinnati Enquirer's Gordon Wittenmyer, the 28-year-old first baseman said he's "pretty much done for the year, for sure."
During an at-bat against the rival St. Louis Cardinals, Steer suffered a partial tear in the tendon sheath in his right wrist, prompting Edwin Arroyo to pinch hit for him during the fifth inning.
Nonetheless, Cincinnati came out victorious 5-3 with the Reds placing Steer on the 10-day injured list the next day.
For now, Steer is attempting alternative remedies in an effort to avoid surgery such as wearing a new splint he was given on Friday upon seeing orthopedic surgeon Dr. Donald Sheridan near Chase Field where the team is competing in a three-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
His presence would be sorely missed last night as the Reds suffered a 9-0 shutout loss while the team struggled to overcome star shortstop Elly De La Cruz's 0-for-4 performance at the plate.
Prior to going down with the injury, Steer batted a solid .238 while recording a .739 OPS and knocking in 40 RBI through 98 games of action. Furthermore, he launched 16 home runs on the season, including two against the Colorado Rockies on July 17.
Among them was his first-ever inside the park homer during the eighth that extended the Reds' lead to 6-2, paving the way for De La Cruz to seal Colorado's fate with a solo blast in the ninth.
With the Reds sitting eight games out of the final NL Wild Card spot and ranking fifth in the NL Central, Steer's extended absence further complicates their push for the postseason and return to divisional prominence.
Still, De La Cruz has shown flashes of future consistency, hitting .257 and logging a team-best .340 on-base percentage while Rookie of the Year candidate Sal Stewart has gelled nicely into the team's lineup with 127 hits, 96 RBI and 27 home runs.
Cincinnati will continue to carry on without Steer tonight at 8:10 p.m. EDT as Rhett Lowder toes the rubber against Diamondbacks right-hander Michael Soroka who has compiled a 2.93 ERA and 88 strikeouts in 92 innings pitched.
