MLB fans disappointed as fantasy baseball favorite Triston McKenzie sidelined for eight weeks: "There goes my preseason Cy Young pick"

Cleveland Guardians right-handed pitcher Triston McKenzie has been put on the shelf after a suspected muscle strain is expected to keep him out of action for at least eight weeks. Mackenzie was an important component in the Guardians' rotation that helped them win the AL Central last season.

The 25-year-old has been a part of the Cleveland system since 2020. He shone in the 2022 season when Triston McKenzie went 11-11 with a 2.96 ERA with over 190 strikeouts in almost 191 innings. It was described by many media outlets as his breakout season.

McKenzie left after just one inning of Sunday's spring training game due to soreness and tightness in his right triceps and shoulder. He underwent an MRI on Monday morning, which confirmed the injury. He will be completely shut down from throwing any pitches for a two-week period, post which there will be a re-evaluation.

Talkin’ Baseball

@TalkinBaseball_

Triston McKenzie will be shut down from throwing for at least two weeks with a shoulder strain and could miss up to eight weeks, per @ZackMeisel

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Triston McKenzie will be shut down from throwing for at least two weeks with a shoulder strain and could miss up to eight weeks, per @ZackMeisel https://t.co/a7UnpcReAN

Fans were distraught at the sight of their young pitcher getting injured in the opening phase of the regular season. Many fantasy team enthusiasts had Triston McKenzie as one of the aces in their teams.

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mitchell

@DeversFanAcc

fantasy team already crumbling twitter.com/zackmeisel/sta…

Zack Meisel

@ZackMeisel

Triston McKenzie has a strain of his right teres major muscle (back of the shoulder) and will be shut down from throwing for 2+ weeks. He'll be sidelined for up to eight weeks overall.

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Triston McKenzie has a strain of his right teres major muscle (back of the shoulder) and will be shut down from throwing for 2+ weeks. He'll be sidelined for up to eight weeks overall.

fantasy team already crumbling twitter.com/zackmeisel/sta… https://t.co/v9iZblqtyQ

stephen shaffer

@stephen_shaffer

Fantasy season hasn’t even started and my team’s already getting boomswoggled and hogsflopped. twitter.com/talkinbaseball…

Talkin’ Baseball

@TalkinBaseball_

Triston McKenzie will be shut down from throwing for at least two weeks with a shoulder strain and could miss up to eight weeks, per @ZackMeisel

582

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Triston McKenzie will be shut down from throwing for at least two weeks with a shoulder strain and could miss up to eight weeks, per @ZackMeisel https://t.co/a7UnpcReAN

Fantasy season hasn’t even started and my team’s already getting boomswoggled and hogsflopped. twitter.com/talkinbaseball…

john

@johnzuidemaa

Bruh my fantasy teams twitter.com/talkinbaseball…

Talkin’ Baseball

@TalkinBaseball_

Triston McKenzie will be shut down from throwing for at least two weeks with a shoulder strain and could miss up to eight weeks, per @ZackMeisel

582

28

Triston McKenzie will be shut down from throwing for at least two weeks with a shoulder strain and could miss up to eight weeks, per @ZackMeisel https://t.co/a7UnpcReAN

Bruh my fantasy teams twitter.com/talkinbaseball…

David Yarger

@YagaBomb24

Guess who bid $21 on him in a fantasy baseball auction draft about 30 minutes before this tweet. 🤬🤬🤬 twitter.com/talkinbaseball…

Talkin’ Baseball

@TalkinBaseball_

Triston McKenzie will be shut down from throwing for at least two weeks with a shoulder strain and could miss up to eight weeks, per @ZackMeisel

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Triston McKenzie will be shut down from throwing for at least two weeks with a shoulder strain and could miss up to eight weeks, per @ZackMeisel https://t.co/a7UnpcReAN

Guess who bid $21 on him in a fantasy baseball auction draft about 30 minutes before this tweet. 🤬🤬🤬 twitter.com/talkinbaseball…

Sean

@BronxDidi

@TalkinBaseball_ @ZackMeisel Almost traded for him in fantasy ‍

@TalkinBaseball_ @ZackMeisel Almost traded for him in fantasy 😮‍💨

Some fans were even eyeing McKenzie as a contender for the Cy Young award this season.

ColonelChestbridge

@Edible14

@ZackMeisel There goes my preseason Cy Young pick. So bummed. Also we seem to have a lot of these injuries on this team

@ZackMeisel There goes my preseason Cy Young pick. So bummed. Also we seem to have a lot of these injuries on this team

Patrick Mahan

@patrickmahan

@TalkinBaseball_ @ZackMeisel Yikes! This guy was my preseason pick for 2023 AL Cy Young.

@TalkinBaseball_ @ZackMeisel Yikes! This guy was my preseason pick for 2023 AL Cy Young.

Other fans chipped in with their quirky reactions with references aimed at the World Baseball Classic.

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Yaozers3

@yaozers3

@TalkinBaseball_ @ZackMeisel Strange, he didn’t pitch in the WBC, how’s he getting injured?

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@TalkinBaseball_ @ZackMeisel Strange, he didn’t pitch in the WBC, how’s he getting injured?

Mikewach32 #D4L

@mikewach32

@TalkinBaseball_ @ZackMeisel

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@TalkinBaseball_ @ZackMeisel https://t.co/JbDNudOcjl

GetWetSports

@GetWetSports

@TalkinBaseball_ @ZackMeisel With forearms like that they’ll have to shut him down on windy days also

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@TalkinBaseball_ @ZackMeisel With forearms like that they’ll have to shut him down on windy days also

Triston McKenzie leaves a hole in the Cleveland Guardians' rotation

The Guardians will be hoping that Triston McKenie emerges from the rehab process faster than expected. His injury has left the defending AL Central with an important spot to fill especially when it comes to starts. The effective options to replace McKenzie are Hunter Gaddis and Konnor Pilkington.

Gaddis left Spring Training with a 2.77 ERA and a 1.00 WHIP over five games (two of them starts) and 13.0 innings while Pilkington started 11 games for the Guardians last season and posted a 4.41 ERA in those starts.

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