Giants Lose Willy Adames to UCL Sprain as Adrian Houser Awaits MRI Results

The San Francisco Giants' medical staff is going to need a raise, or at least a very stiff drink.

MLB Trade Rumors just dropped the hammer that shortstop Willy Adames has been diagnosed with a UCL sprain, while pitcher Adrian Houser is headed for an MRI after his own elbow flared up. Losing one key player to an elbow issue in late August is bad luck. Losing two in the same news cycle is the kind of roster nuke that sends betting lines into a complete tailspin.

"MLB Trade Rumors reported: 'Willy Adames Diagnosed With UCL Sprain; Adrian Houser Headed For MRI'"

Adames is officially hitting the 10-day injured list with a moderate left elbow sprain. This is just the cherry on top of a miserable stretch for the 30-year-old veteran. He was already trying to play through back spasms that looked like they required a chiropractor on speed dial, dragging his season line down to a .224 average and a career-low .698 OPS over 116 games.

Houser’s situation is just as brutal. The guy finally gets out of the bullpen, makes his first start in two months, pitches a gem, and immediately exits with left elbow pain. He has a 4.02 ERA over 109.2 innings this year, which is exactly the kind of perfectly fine, inning-eating production a team desperately needs to survive the dog days of summer.

If you were holding a Giants futures ticket, it might be time to start looking at it as a decorative bookmark. You simply do not replace a starting shortstop and a versatile swingman overnight without feeling the structural damage on the field.

Now we wait for Houser's MRI results to see if San Francisco needs to start holding open tryouts for the rotation. Manager Tony Vitello is going to have to get incredibly creative with his lineup card, because the Giants are rapidly running out of healthy elbows.