Minnesota Twins: Sonny Gray leaves start with a hamstring problem

The Minnesota Twins came into the season with a collection of intriguing starters, but no bona fide ace to lead the rotation. Joe Ryan looked like he was coming into his own as that SP1 earlier in the season, and while his overall results are still very impressive, he’s tailed off a bit as of late.

Free agent pickups Dylan Bundy and Chris Archer are struggling to keep league-average lines in their 2022 campaign, and big deadline acquisition Tyler Mahle looked good when he was out there, but that’s seldom been the case so far. He left his third start with the team with a severely diminished velocity, and went on the IL.

The man left to carry the mantle of Twins ace is another trade acquisition from the Cincinnati Reds, but one who came onboard before the season started; former Oakland A’s first-round pick Sonny Gray. The talented right-hander leads all starters on the team with a 123 ERA+ on the year and has shown to be the best arm on the

Minnesota Twins starter Sonny Gray leaves with injury.

Sonny Gray, in his own right, has dealt with injury woes in the season, something not uncommon in his career, but is proving a fine acquisition for the Twins’ rotation. Following his latest start, the Twins may be in a dire situation as Gray left the game after four innings with a hamstring problem.

This is the worst time for Gray to miss starts as the Twins are in the middle of a division race with the Cleveland Guardians, and also fighting for a possible Wild Card spot with the likes of the Mariners, Blue Jays, Rays, and Orioles. You can even throw the White Sox in that conversation, especially following last night’s head-to-head win over Minnesota and likely win tonight.

It is unclear at the moment if Sonny Gray will miss significant time, or even be able to make his next scheduled start, but a potential absence would inevitably create a big obstacle for the Minnesota Twins in this playoff chase.

Sonny Gray’s career has been marked by a certain level of instability as he struggled massively in 2016 after three great years to open his career in Oakland, then bounced back, but failed to establish himself in New York with the Yankees.

Gray bounced back with very strong 2019 and 2020 campaigns for the Reds but was dealt following a more mediocre 2021 for a Twins rotation that needed both depth and quality. As mentioned above, Gray has been arguably the best pitcher on the team this year, and a big part of why this staff has done just enough to allow the offense to carry the team towards playoff contention. We’ll update the Sonny Gray situation as further information comes from the team.