Joshua Kuroda-Grauer fouled a ball off himself, doubled over in obvious pain, and still finished the at-bat. He singled into center field. Only afterward did it seem clear that he had ruptured a testicle at the moment of contact, MLB Trade Rumors reported, citing a clip from Jomboy Media.
He was taken out of the game later and apparently needed surgery. The Athletics announced on Tuesday that the infielder was on the 10-day injured list because of that surgery. How long he will be gone is unclear, though the site judged it fair to expect some recovery time from what it called a gruesome injury.
The A’s filled the roster spot with infielder Max Muncy, recalled along with right-hander Hayden Juenger. Muncy had hit .227/.303/.396, with poor defensive grades at third base, before he was sent to the minors earlier in July.
Leiter out as well
The same announcement put right-hander Mark Leiter Jr. on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to July 19, with a right hip impingement. It is the second time this year that the problem has sidelined him.
The timing stings for a club at 43-57 and 8.5 games out of a playoff spot, which makes it a seller ahead of the August 3 deadline. Leiter is an impending free agent and would have been one of the few simple trade candidates on the roster. Since the start of 2022 he has pitched 272 innings with a 28 percent strikeout rate, an 8.5 percent walk rate and a 45.9 percent ground ball rate. His ERA over that span is 4.17, helped along by a .311 batting average on balls in play.
