Astros' Carlos Correa says rib was hurting prior to massage injury - Houston Chronicle

[massage]

Astros shortstop Carlos Correa said it's never a good sign when a masseuse gasps – and the cracking sound just prior didn't make him feel any better.

"I said, 'What happened? What's that?'" Correa said on Sunday, in explaining his cracked rib in detail for the first time since it happened late last month. "She said, 'That's never happened in my 20 years.' I'm like, 'That's not comforting.'"

Correa, who's been on the injured list since May 29, said his masseuse broke the rib during a home massage on May 28, and on Sunday he said his rib had been troubling him prior to the final crack.

"My rib was bothering me quite a bit during games, and I was getting a massage at home one day and she pressed on that area, and there was a loud crack," he said. "... I thought the (prior rib) soreness was just from playing every day and diving for balls and swinging (the bat) every day. It was just unfortunate."

Carlos Correa said his rib had been bothering him before it cracked during massage: pic.twitter.com/vKGZ8g53Qd

— Brent Zwerneman (@BrentZwerneman) June 9, 2019​

Correa said he receives a home massage every day at 10 a.m. to try and combat injury. Correa, who's been prone to injury since being the American League rookie of the year in 2015, said he immediately drove to Minute Maid Park for an MRI following the crack.

"The MRI revealed a cracked rib," said Correa, who added that he would no longer be using the services of that particular masseuse. "Now we just have to focus on what we can control, and that's getting back on the field as soon as possible."

Correa's replacement, Jack Mayfield, had a critical throwing error that led to the Orioles' winning run on Saturday in the Astros' 4-1 setback at Minute Maid to one of baseball's worst teams. Still, the Astros (44-22) are tied with the Dodgers for most wins so far in the major leagues.

Astros’ Carlos Correa on the moment his rib cracked during a massage: ‘That’s not comforting ...’ @HoustonChron pic.twitter.com/HWeIxqhBSL

— Brent Zwerneman (@BrentZwerneman) June 9, 2019​

"Obviously you want to be out there for your team, and I feel like I was ... playing good and getting comfortable at the plate," said Correa, who's hitting .295 in 50 games this season.

He then mentioned the Astros' extensive injured list that includes stars George Springer and Jose Altuve.

"It happened at a bad time," he said of the cracked rib. "... They said four to six weeks. I'm taking it day by day and hopefully (I'll return) sooner than expected. ... Thank God the team is playing good baseball right now and winning games."

Let's block ads! (Why?)