Donovan Solano, frustrated by hamstring injury, hopeful healing process will speed up
Bobby NightengaleDonovan Solano wants to make it clear he’s not trying to throw anyone under the bus, but it shouldn’t surprise anybody he’s frustrated.
It’s been six weeks since Solano injured his left hamstring in a spring training game and he still hasn’t reached the point where he’s ready to begin a rehab assignment.
He spent a couple of weeks trying to push himself, participating in full pregame workouts, but it never felt quite right. He had a platelet-rich plasma injection in late-April and that led to soreness at the injection site. He recently bought a device for red light therapy, hoping it’ll speed up the process, but he has yet to resume baseball activities.
“It’s frustrating for me and for everybody,” Solano said. “I want to play, but right now we can’t rush. We can’t do anything else except let it heal and start the progression from there.”
Joey Votto:Joey Votto, Nick Senzel may not rejoin Cincinnati Reds on upcoming 9-game road trip
For subscribers:'A privilege': Tommy Pham doesn’t want Reds teammates taking MLB opportunities for granted
Game story vs. Brewers:Tyler Stephenson continues to shine as a breakout player in a Reds win over the Brewers
When Solano initially strained his hamstring running the bases in spring training, he was evaluated by the Cincinnati Reds’ medical staff and never underwent an MRI scan. The medical staff’s decision not to give him an MRI was based on the severity of the strain.
About a month into the injury, when Solano couldn’t run at 80% speed without pain, he received an MRI.
“On the last day before I got an MRI, I felt something running,” Solano said. “I pushed myself because I want to try this. You never know. I trust the doctor. Let’s push a little bit more, but I felt something in my muscle, and I was like, ‘I don’t like this feeling.’ That’s why we got an MRI because it never felt good. The MRI showed that I’m still injured, it’s a little bit more than what they were thinking or expected.”
Solano missed more than a month of the 2018 season because of a hamstring injury when he played for the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Triple-A affiliate and he didn’t receive an MRI for that hamstring injury, either. His current hamstring injury is in a slightly different spot, he said.
In hindsight, Solano wished he had an MRI immediately after the injury occurred.
"For confirmation," he said. "We didn’t think it was going to happen like this before."
Mike Minor:Reds lefty Mike Minor hopes to return to rotation soon: 'These guys are paying me to play'
Cincinnati Reds:Paul Daugherty: The toughest job in sports is broadcasting Cincinnati Reds games
Luis Castillo:Luis Castillo gives the Reds hope as the offense breaks out in a win over the Brewers
There was a point in mid-April when Solano appeared close to beginning a rehab assignment. He took batting practice. He fielded ground balls at third base. The last box he needed to check was running the bases pain-free.
“I felt something bothering me, but it wasn’t too painful,” Solano said. “I tried to put myself into normal game speed. Not full speed, but normal game speed. My body was not responding as well as possible. That’s why I got an MRI, and everyone saw what was going on there specifically and now we start there.”
The Reds signed Solano to a one-year contract during spring training and he was expected to garner a lot of starts at third base. He hit .280 with 17 doubles, seven homers and 31 RBI in 101 games for the San Francisco Giants last year, excelling against left-handed pitching.
His timetable is uncertain, but he’s hopeful the PRP injection and red light therapy leads to a quicker healing process.
“As soon as you see me run better on the bases, I’m going to play,” Solano said. “I don’t need two months. I need to feel better, even 80% running the bases because maybe in rehab I can increase that and improve that. I don’t feel 80% at least pain-free running the bases, but as soon as I feel that I’m going to play.”
David Bell wants Tony Santillan to fall into a rhythm
SANTILLAN’S STRIKES: Tony Santillan had an uncharacteristic outing in Tuesday’s 5-4 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers, failing to record an out against the three batters he faced.
After three scoreless appearances to begin the season, Santillan has yielded eight runs on 11 hits and five walks in his last seven innings.
“If you go back and look at the games where I haven’t had the best outing, I’ve been very bad at getting ahead of guys,” Santillan said. “I’m falling behind guys, putting myself in a tougher spot than it already is, you know. For me, my big thing is pounding that zone, especially early in counts. When I do that, it’s night and day. I just have to keep working on that.”
Manager David Bell says he wants to make sure Santillan falls into a rhythm, coming into games regularly because “he can get into a little bit of trouble when he’s too strong.” Bell thought Santillan’s outing against the Pittsburgh Pirates last Saturday may have been the best he’s looked all year.
Santillan still gave up a run in 1 2/3 innings, a two-out RBI double, but he struck out four. His slider was near unhittable, drawing three whiffs in five swings against it, and his fastball was up 99 mph.
“It’s not like I come out here and I’m like, ‘my (stuff) sucks or whatever,’” Santillan said. “My confidence is there. I know I belong here. I know I can pitch here. It’s just one of those things where I have to limit the holes I dig for myself and have more good ones back-to-back and build off of them.”
Will the Cincinnati Reds snap road losing streak?
ROAD WOES: The Reds are on a 13-game road losing streak entering Thursday's series opener in Pittsburgh. It's the club's longest road losing skid since a 0-19 stretch from July 5-Aug. 24, 1933.
