The Arizona DIamondbacks rotation took multiple hits on Friday, placing Shelby Miller and Rubby De La Rosa on the disabled list. While Miller's placement on the disabled list was expected, De La Rosa's placement on the 15-day DL with an elbow injury was a surprising announcenment.
De La Rosa missed a start last week with a triceps injury but returned to the mound on Wednesday against the Pittsburgh Pirates. In his latest start, De La Rosa allowed five runs over 4 1/3 innings pitched. De La Rosa was in the midst of one of his best seasons of his career with a 1.15 WHIP and 3.53 ERA before his most recent start.
The news that it is a sprained UCL in his pitching elbow, which he had Tommy John Surgery on years ago, is even more concerning. While it's possible this could just be a low-grade strain, it is alarming for someone who has torn the UCL before that it could be torn again.
With De La Rosa out of action, Arizona will call up Edwin Escobar to take the start. Escobar was picked up from the Red Sox Triple-A team and put back into the starting rotation by the Diamondbacks. Over five starts, he has a 4.86 ERA, though three starts of five-plus innings with one or fewer runs allowed and a four-inning, 11-run outing on May 19 that inflated his ERA.