Marcus Semien's Injury Doesn't Seem Likely to Land him on the Athletics' Injured List

Veteran Oakland shortstop Marcus Semien developed some pain on his left side that forced him to miss the second game of Saturday's doubleheader. And MRI seems to indicate that the injury isn't serious, at least not enough to put him on the disabled list.

It appears that the Oakland A’s may have caught some good fortune regarding shortstop Marcus Semien.

The veteran was pulled from the lineup for the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader after experiencing some pain in his left side. He had an MRI that evening and the result indicates that Semien doesn’t have a serious injury

At least it’s not serious enough to land him on the disabled list, a result first reported by theathletic.com’s Ken Rosenthal in a tweet, the veracity of which was later confirmed by multiple sources.

Oakland isn’t scheduled to play again until Tuesday, and that game, and indeed that three-game series in Seattle against the Mariners, is very much in question. With the A’s having had a member of their traveling party test positive for the COVID-19 coronavirus, it’s likely that one or more of the games in Seattle will be postponed as Major League Baseball and the A’s make sure to keep others from being in a position to test positive.

That could give Semien, who finished third in the MVP race last year, some unexpected extra time off to heal without missing many games.

For the moment, the A’s, who traded away backup shortstop Franklin Barreto Friday, don’t have an experienced backup for Semien. Two-time Platinum and Gold Glove winning third baseman Matt Chapman started Game 2 Saturday as Semien’s consecutive games played streak ended at 275.

Chad Pinder has played a bit of shortstop over the last few years, spelling Semien as needed, but he wasn’t with the team Saturday, being with his wife, Taylor, and the birth of their first child. He’s expected to be back with the A’s when they resume playing, although no one is quite sure when that will be. After Seattle, the A’s are schedule for a Coliseum series this weekend against San Diego.

If the A’s feel the need, they can promote an infielder like Sheldon Neuse to fill in at shortstop for Semien. Neuse was in the competition to be the starting second baseman during both Spring Training and during summer camp.

Follow Athletics insider John Hickey on Twitter: @JHickey3

Click the "follow" button in the top right corner to join the conversation on Inside the Athletics on SI. Access and comment on featured stories and start your own conversations and post external links on our community page.