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NEW YORK — Major League Baseball says pitcher injuries are more likely to occur during spring training and early in the season.

Management has rejected an assertion by players’ union head Tony Clark that injuries might be linked to the pitch clock that was instituted last year and slightly shortened this season.

“In 2014 or so we started with this upward trend,” commissioner Rob Manfred said Thursday after owners were presented with data. “It looked like it turned the other way last year. We don’t know what that means, whether that’s going to continue or not. I think in terms of the lens, early in the season was not an aberration. There is a pattern that has been an early-season problem for a while.”

Cleveland’s Shane Bieber, Atlanta’s Spencer Strider, Boston’s Lucas Giolito, the New York Yankees’ Jonathan Loáisiga and Miami’s Eury Pérez are among the pitchers who have been sidelined by elbow injuries this year.

MLB has not released the data publicly. Johns Hopkins has been conducting a study that has not been released and has interviewed more than 200 players and doctors, Manfred said.

Fear of pitcher injuries caused some clubs to block their players from participating in the World Baseball Classic in March 2023, and it could become an issue in allowing major leaguers to participate in the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

LA 2028 chairman Casey Wasserman in February gave owners a presentation on possible Olympic play.

“It’s hard to talk about and be focused on pitching injuries on the one side and not realize that that issue bleeds over into WBC participation, Olympic participation,” Manfred said. “I think that Casey kind of owes us a more detailed breakout of what he thinks can happen with respect to the Olympics. The one thing I’ll say about it is to the extent that the data we saw today about early season, it’s kind of a plus in terms of Olympic participation because everybody’s all built up at that point in time. To the extent that these injuries are driven by the transition from offseason to in season, at least we would be past that.”

Manfred said baseball’s competition committee had not formulated any proposal on possibly reducing the maximum number of pitchers on the 26-man active roster from 13 to 12. The change is advocated by some who think it would lead to longer outings by starters.

“You can kind of go the route of a limited number of pitchers and force people to essentially pitch more in order to cover the innings,” Manfred said, “or you can try to come up with a set of rules that creates a softer incentive for people to go deep.”

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Phils expect Turner back Monday after 6 weeks out

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Phils expect Turner back Monday after 6 weeks out

BALTIMORE — The Philadelphia Phillies expect to have star shortstop Trea Turner back Monday, according to manager Rob Thomson.

Thomson said Sunday that Turner would be activated the following day “unless something weird happens.” He hasn’t played since May 3 because of a left hamstring strain.

Turner hit .343 with 10 stolen bases in 33 games before going on the injured list.

The Phillies have kept right on rolling without him. They led the National League East by eight games entering Sunday’s series finale at Baltimore.

Philadelphia hosts San Diego on Monday in its first home game since June 5 — immediately before the team traveled to London for a couple of games against the New York Mets. The Phillies followed that trip with series at Boston and Baltimore.

“It seems like we’ve been gone for a month,” Thomson said.

Edmundo Sosa has played well in Turner’s absence. He hit his fifth homer of the season Saturday.

“He’s huge. I think for the last couple of years, probably the baseball world looked at him as a utility man. Now they’re looking at him like a shortstop,” Thomson said. “So his value is very high right now, as it should be because he’s played very well.”

Sosa figures to have a role going forward as an infield backup — and possibly in the outfield.

“If he’s not playing every day, there’s nothing wrong with getting him some outfield work,” Thomson said. “Just to see what it looks like, just to get him comfortable.”

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Jays’ Bichette (calf) remains out vs. Guardians

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Jays' Bichette (calf) remains out vs. Guardians

Two-time All-Star shortstop Bo Bichette will miss his second straight game Sunday due to right calf soreness as the Toronto Blue Jays wrap up a three-game series against the Cleveland Guardians.

Isiah Kiner-Falefa replaced Bichette at shortstop this weekend, while left fielder Davis Schneider returned to Toronto’s starting lineup after a one-game absence.

Bichette, 26, is hitting .237 with four homers and 28 RBIs in 66 games this season.

A second-round draft pick in 2016 and an All-Star in 2021 and 2023, Bichette is hitting .293 with 93 homers and 340 RBIs in 595 games since making his debut with Toronto in 2019.

Schneider, 25, is hitting .230 with eight homers and 33 RBIs in 63 games this season.

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Cubs’ Hendricks earns starting job back vs. Giants

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Cubs' Hendricks earns starting job back vs. Giants

CHICAGO — Veteran Cubs pitcher Kyle Hendricks will start Wednesday’s game against the Giants, the team announced Sunday.

It will be Hendricks’ first start since giving up eight runs in a May outing against the Pittsburgh Pirates. He has made five relief appearances since then, including three scoreless ones this month.

“We’re down pitchers right now,” manager Craig Counsell said before announcing the move.

The Cubs lost two starters just this week, including Ben Brown to a neck injury and Jordan Wicks to an oblique strain. Wicks came out of Friday’s game against the St. Louis Cardinals after 1⅔ innings, giving way to Hendricks who threw 4⅓ shutout innings in emergency duty.

Despite the 3-0 loss, that outing, along with several other recent ones, earned Hendricks another chance at starting.

“In a lot of ways, Kyle continues to impress you even though he’s had a tough go of it so far,” Counsell said. “He’s worried about the things he can control.”

Hendricks, 34, was demoted to the bullpen after struggling throughout his first seven starts of the season as his ERA ballooned to over 12.00. Those struggles led to speculation that the longest-tenured Cubs player might lose his roster spot, but pitching injuries have continued to pile up for Chicago, giving the right-hander more opportunities.

The team is also down relievers Yency Almonte, Julian Merryweather and Adbert Alzolay.

It’s unclear how long Hendricks will pitch against the Giants after spending the past month in the bullpen, but the Cubs are hopeful he will just continue to get outs as he is coming off arguably his best appearance of the season.

“Kyle pitched wonderfully,” Counsell said after Friday’s game. “Gave us a chance to win.”

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