When a guy fractures his rib(s), that’s not an injury where we have a pretty well-set idea in our minds about how long he’ll be out. It depends on the extent and location of the fracture(s), the natural healing speed of the individual, how much various body rotations are affected, and then pain tolerance (while still performing well). You can always hope for something quick, but you might also be in a situation like the Red Sox are with Triston Casas, who almost immediately went on the 60-day IL.
This is all set up for the Cody Bellinger situation, with the Cubs’ center fielder going on the IL on April 24 after a collision with the unforgiving bricks at Wrigley Field. He suffered a couple rib fractures in the process, and we’ve not had a clue how long he’s going to be out.
But we just got a clue, and it was kind of a surprising one:
Already playing catch and hitting soft toss? Five days after cracking his ribs?!
Sahadev Sharma added that Bellinger “was hopeful timeline could be similar to when he injured ribs in 2021 and had a minimum stay on the IL.”
A minimum stay now would be just another five days of Bellinger being out. Heck, if he returned that quickly, he wouldn’t even necessarily need a minor league rehab stint. That just seems unbelievable to me. So I’ll probably be cautious and, you know, not believe it. A couple more weeks or something like that. Just to keep my heart safe.
The fact that Bellinger is doing this level of baseball activity already, though, is a fantastic sign. Pete Crow-Armstrong has been filling in well for Bellinger, but you’d still like to have him back. He was just starting to get really hot when the injury happened, and the Cubs will undoubtedly need his bat.