The Kansas City Royals are on the verge of getting swept in their series against the Atlanta Braves, but they still have one game to go. It looks like they'll have to do so without one of their key players, as Carlos Estevez is dealing with an ankle injury. The latest update was that he was in a walking boot, according to Anne Rogers of MLB.com
“Carlos Estévez is in a boot this morning and will have his ankle contusion reevaluated, but manager Matt Quatraro said he would be ‘surprised' if Estévez would be available today. If he were, Quatraro said ‘we would not be averse to putting him in a lower-leverage situation,'” Rogers wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
Quatraro was asked if he would turn to Estevez in the ninth inning if he were to be available in the game, and he seemed noncommittal to the idea.
“I'm not going to say he wouldn't do it, but I also think would be probably smarter for us to try to build him a little bit in lower leverage first,” Quatraro said.
It's uncertain how serious the injury is for Estevez, but it wouldn't be ideal if he had to miss extended time already to start the season.
It will be interesting to see what the Royals do for the time being, as they'll have to rely on their depth if the injury is long-term. For now, they have to focus on trying to get a win against the Braves, and then move on to the Minnesota Twins.
