Kenley Jansen's injury may not be as problematic as it appeared to be.
Jansen exited Wednesday night's game against the Houston Astros with a hamstring issue after facing only one batter in the ninth inning. The Boston Red Sox closer looked to be in serious discomfort as he walked off the mound and into the dugout.
After the game, however, manager Alex Cora downplayed the injury.
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“Just tight,” Cora said of Jansen’s hamstring. “We’ll see where at tomorrow, how he feels. Hopefully, he’s ready for Friday.”
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Jansen discussed the injury on Thursday and sounded optimistic that he will avoid the injured list, according to MassLive.com's Christopher Smith.
That news should bring a sigh of relief to Sox fans, because the last thing the club needs right now is an injury to its All-Star closer. Boston is hanging on by a thread in the American League wild-card race with about one month remaining in the regular season. It entered Thursday's action four games behind the Seattle Mariners for the third wild-card spot.
The Red Sox will wrap up their four-game set vs. the Astros on Thursday before heading back home to host the Los Angeles Dodgers for a three-game weekend series.