Reds: Nick Castellanos’ late-inning substitution may keep him off IL

During an Instagram chat last night with Jomboy Media’s Chris Rose, Cincinnati Reds‘ outfielder Nick Castellanos revealed that a CT scan showed he’d suffered a micro fracture in his right wrist. Castellanos told Rose that he was unable to swing a bat and he’s probably at 50%. Castellanos will rest the injury and see how his body responds in the coming days;

Castellanos has been out of the Cincinnati starting lineup since Saturday, but did make an appearance during an extra-inning affair with the New York Mets on Monday evening. That may keep Castellanos off the 10-day IL, as now a retroactive placement on the injured list would mean the soonest the slugger could return would be July 30th rather than July 27th.

In the the first three games without Castellanos in the starting lineup, David Bell chose to roll with Tyler Naquin in right field and Shogo Akiyama in center. Over the last two games, we’ve seen Aristides Aquino draw the start in right field and Naquin return to center field.

How long will the Reds be without Nick Castellanos?

Yesterday’s update was straight from the horse’s mouth, so Reds’ skipper David Bell has yet to update Nick Castellanos’ status officially. But, I expect it’ll remain day-to-day. If there’s any glimmer of hope that Castellanos can play before July 30th, I can’t envision the Reds placing the All-Star on the IL.

The possibility exists, however, that we will see Nick Senzel return to the field relatively soon. The former first-round pick has been sidelined for about two months with a  knee injury that required surgery.

Senzel is expected to begin a rehab stint with Triple-A Louisville next week. The former University of Tennessee standout is expected to take the field at both center field and shortstop. That could greatly help Bell’s lineup by having such a versatile player on the roster until Castellanos returns.

The Reds could also recall Alejo Lopez who has experience playing the outfield as well. However, it would have to be because of injury, as Lopez was optioned on Sunday has to stay in the minors for 10 days. With the patchwork bullpen so enigmatic this season, it’s hard to see Bell giving up one of his hurlers for a bat, but this latest news on Castellanos may necessitate as much.

Cincinnati could also select the contract of TJ Friedl who played quite well in Triple-A this season. Friedl owns a .796 OPS in 66 games this season and is a versatile fielder, capable of playing all three positions on the outfield grass.