Orioles’ Mark Trumbo to miss 3-4 weeks with quad strain

Orioles’ slugger Mark Trumbo will be sidelined 3-4 weeks after MRI results revealed a Grade 2 strain in his right quad, manager Buck Showalter announced earlier today.

Trumbo participated in the Orioles’ 7-4 win over the Yankees on Wednesday night, but Showalter said they were unable to pinpoint when the injury took place.

Trumbo, 32, will start the 2018 season on the DL, as Opening Day is just two weeks away. Pedro Alvarez could be a candidate to step in for Trumbo until he is able to return, or fourth outfielder Craig Gentry could handle left field duties while former Rookie of the Year candidate Trey Mancini slides into the DH role.

The injury serves as a rough start for Trumbo, who is looking to bounce back from a disappointing 2017 campaign, where he hit just 23 homers while balls were flying out of every ballpark. Trumbo was one of the premier home run hitters in the 2016 season, hitting a league-leading 47 homers and finished with an OPS+ of 122.

That OPS+ dropped to 83 last season, after Trumbo resigned with the O’s for three years and $37.5 million.