Rays' Blake Snell Placed on IL After Toe Injury Diagnosed as Fracture

Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Blake Snell has been placed on the injured list after suffering a fractured right toe, according to broadcaster Neil Solondz.

Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times detailed the unusual way Snell picked up the injury:

On the plus side, he is expected to return when first eligible on April 24 after just one missed start, per Solondz.

Snell was off to a strong start to the 2019 season, producing a 2-1 record and 2.16 ERA in four starts. He leads the league with 36 strikeouts, which is even more impressive considering he has issued just four walks all year.

This follows up on his incredible 2018 campaign when he won the American League Cy Young award with a 21-5 record and 1.89 ERA.

As good as he has been, however, the Rays remain conservative in their approach with him. Snell pitched only 180.2 innings last year and has been limited already this season.

In his most recent start Saturday, the 26-year-old was pulled after only 82 pitches despite allowing zero runs and one hit in six innings.

"We want to win the marathon not the sprint," pitching coach Kyle Snyder said after the game, per Topkin. "As important as pitching and the health of a staff is in 2019, I'm always going to err on the side of being conservative with our guys. That was the case last year, and I'm not going to change this year."

Despite the goal to keep him healthy, Snell ended up getting hurt on his off day Sunday.

It was an unfortunate accident, but it showed you never know what can happen with professional athletes.

Emilio Pagan will fill the open roster spot in Tampa Bay after allowing two earned runs in six innings in Triple-A this season.