TOLEDO, Ohio -- James McCann, who is recovering from a right ankle sprain, went 0-for-3 with two walks in his injury rehabilitation assignment debut with Triple-A Toledo.
The Detroit Tigers announced Tuesday afternoon that McCann would start his injury rehab assignment on Tuesday night with Triple-A Toledo. The catcher has been out since April 12, 2016 with a right ankle sprain.
Early injury
McCann was pulled from a game early in the season against the Pittsburgh Pirates as he ran into first baseman John Jaso while trying to record an infield single in the bottom of the fifth inning. After the game, he was diagnosed with a right ankle sprain, the X-rays came back negative and it was reported as a Grade 2 right ankle sprain.
McCann's comeback
After resuming baseball activities, running the bases, catching a bullpen session and more, McCann was finally cleared to make a rehab assignment appearance with the Mud Hens.
The debut performance
McCann served as the designated hitter for the minor league game against Triple-A Gwinnett. The catcher went 0-for-3 with two walks. His first at-bat was a walk, but then he went hitless in his next two at-bats before drawing his second walk of the game. McCann grounded out in the bottom of the ninth inning to end the game.
What is next?
The 25-year-old should get catching opportunities in a few days and could return to the big league roster by the weekend. Currently, Detroit has Jarrod Saltalamacchia as the starting catcher, but McCann will push Salty into a backup role once he returns.