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Stone. PETERSBURG — In his second start from a 15-day injury list, Rays ace Shane McClanahan pulled out of Tropicana due to a left neck strain in the fifth inning of Tuesday night’s 5-0 loss Field’s Astros.
McClanahan walks Jose Altuve to start Game 5, then to Astros shortstop Jeremy Peña threw three straight balls — a change below the strike zone and a continuous slider. McLanahan appeared to grimac and rotate his throwing shoulder after the final pitch, which drew manager Kevin Cash and first assistant athletic trainer Mike Sandoval to the mound from their home dugout.
McClanahan seemed to say to Cash: “I’m fine”, But he didn’t try to throw any warm-up shots and left Sandoval after a brief conversation. He was replaced by right-hander Sean Armstrong, who went on to walk Peña.
McClanahan did not immediately return to the Rays Club for treatment. Instead, the southpaw stood next to pitching coach Kyle Snyder as the authorities proceeded, a possible sign that there wasn’t much of a concern about his state.
McLanahan scratched in Miami starter on Aug. 30 , just as he planned to pitch and suffered a left shoulder impingement the next day. He completed a minimum of 15 days of work, returned to the mound last Thursday in Toronto, pitched like he was going all out, allowing only 3 hits and 1 walk in the Rays’ 11-0 win over Rodgers , while striking out center in 5 over 5 innings.
“I feel normal,” McClanahan said Monday afternoon. “I can safely say it’s [three] weeks…no real competitive play, but I feel like I’m recovering well and I’m ready to start.”
McLanahan seems a little off track after dropping four points in first three innings against Astros . The All-Star starter is shooting 67 percent from the field this season, but made just 45 of his 80 field goals Tuesday. He was charged with tying a season-high five games in which Armstrong was allowed to score in the fifth.
McClanahan in 19 swings on his first trip through Houston’s lineup Incited just two swings, and in his first three innings, he threw just five of 52 pitches. He appeared to bounce back in the fourth quarter, recording three strikeouts in one out, and then leaving with 10 pitches in the fifth.
