Matt Shoemaker Injury: Updates on Angels Pitcher's Oblique and Return

Updates from Wednesday, Oct. 1 

Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register provides an update on Matt Shoemaker's status:

Updates from Tuesday, Sept. 30 

Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register provides an update from Matt Schoemaker, who spoke about his status for the ALDS:

Updates from Monday, Sept. 29

Alden Gonzalez of MLB.com passed along a statement from the team on Matt Shoemaker's condition:

Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports also weighed in on Shoemaker:

Updates from Saturday, Sept. 27

Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times has an update on Shoemaker:

"

Matt Shoemaker extended his long-toss work to 150 feet on Friday, and he could throw off a mound by Sunday or Monday, fueling hope that the Angels' right-hander, who suffered a mild left rib cage strain on Sept. 15, will be ready to pitch in the American League division series.

“It’s still day to day, but I’m very encouraged about where we’re at,” said Shoemaker, a rookie who went 16-4 with a 3.04 earned run average this season. “It feels much better. My arm feels good. My body feels good. I’m being safe if something doesn’t feel right. There have been no setbacks.”

Manager Mike Scioscia said Shoemaker would need to stretch his long-toss to 200 feet before getting back on the mound. Pitching coach Mike Butcher said Shoemaker would need to throw off a mound no later than Tuesday for the Angels to determine by Thursday whether he can pitch in the first round.

"

Updates from Wednesday, Sept. 24

Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register has the latest on Matt Shoemaker's rehab:

Updates from Monday, Sept. 22

Alden Gonzalez of MLB.com has the latest update on Matt Shoemaker as he continues to rehab his oblique injury:

Updates from Thursday, Sept. 18

Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register has the latest on Shoemaker's recovery:

Updates from Wednesday, Sept. 17

Alden Gonzalez of MLB.com has an update on Matt Shoemaker and his ailing oblique:

Original Text

Not much has gone wrong for the Los Angeles Angels lately, but injuries have a nasty way of changing that. 

For the Halos, the concern is over rookie starting pitcher Matt Shoemaker, who helped the Angels clinch a playoff spot Monday night with a dominant effort against the Seattle Mariners but left after 96 pitches with a minor injury to his oblique.    

MLB.com's Alden Gonzalez provided an update following an MRI Tuesday:

Manager Mike Scioscia, via USA Today's Jorge L. Ortiz, talked about the injury after Monday's win:

"

We're concerned when something like that happens to a pitcher. Sometimes it's a cramp or a little stitch and these guys bounce right back, and sometimes there's issues with an oblique that keep guys down for a long time. We don't know what the range is right now.

"

Fortunately for the Angels, Shoemaker doesn't sound concerned, via Gonzalez:

Still, it's enough to keep him out of his next start, according to Scioscia, via the Los Angeles Times' Mike DiGiovanna:

The 27-year-old rookie has been tremendous this season, going 16-4 with a 3.04 ERA and 1.07 WHIP in 136.0 innings. More importantly, since the start of August—right around the time the Angels began pulling away in the West—he has been nearly untouchable, sporting a 1.66 ERA and 0.89 WHIP in 10 appearances (h/t Baseball-Reference.com).

Scioscia, via MLB.com's Lyle Spencer and Fox Sports' Jon Morosi, noted Shoemaker's importance to the Angels' success:

With the Halos on the brink of wrapping up a division title, they should feel comfortable skipping his turn in the rotation as many times as necessary to ensure he's completely healthy for a postseason run. 

L.A. has one of the deepest pitching staffs in the majors, but with Garrett Richards already sidelined, a healthy Shoemaker will be crucial for a deep October run.