Arizona Diamondbacks outfielder Corbin Carroll’s surprising rookie season will continue much sooner than anyone anticipated.
Carroll left Thursday night’s game against the New York Mets in the seventh inning after swinging at a pitch and then grabbing his right shoulder, in obvious pain.
Many people immediately feared the worst, as that’s the same shoulder Carroll had surgically repaired in 2021. And it’s the second time in about a week he’s left a game early with an issue in that shoulder; he left the team’s game on June 29 after he said he felt a “really weird feeling in my shoulder.”
Corbin Carroll, the leading contender for NL Rookie of the Year and one of MLB's most productive players, grabs his right shoulder after a swing and immediately leaves the game. pic.twitter.com/jmA33d23p2
— The Comeback (@thecomeback) July 7, 2023
This is really concerning stuff, but Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo laid all those concerns to rest Friday with a surprising and incredibly optimistic report. Lovullo told Arizona Sports’ Burns & Gambo show that the rookie “dodged a bullet” and will return to action “a lot sooner” rather than later.
“All early indications are very, very positive to the point where he’s in there taking a couple swings right now, testing it out and seeing how it feels,” Lovullo said. “There’s potential for him to be playing a lot sooner than later. And I mean a lot sooner. We’re going to keep our fingers crossed that he continues to check some boxes and feel good enough to get back in the lineup.
The Diamondbacks are obviously not going to take any chances with their young star, and he had an MRI with favorable results Friday.
“Here’s the situation with Corbin, he’s so in tune with his body. He is such a strong athlete — probably one of the strongest bodies I’ve ever seen,” Lovullo said. “He has a surgically repaired shoulder and when something isn’t exactly right I think he — because he feel and understand things — it throws him off.”
"All early indications are very, very positive. To the point where he's in there taking a couple of swings right now…There's potential for him to be playing a lot sooner than later. And I mean A LOT sooner."
— Torey Lovullo on Corbin Carroll's injury.pic.twitter.com/awBi1wYnYQ
— The Comeback (@thecomeback) July 7, 2023
This is certainly good news for the Diamondbacks and their fans. Carroll, who is scheduled to start the All-Star Game as a rookie, is slashing .290/.365/.559 this year, with 18 home runs and a 150 OPS+.
