Struggling Minnesota Twins ace Joe Ryan is expected to need a stint on the injured list after an MRI on a lower-body injury revealed a mild left glute strain.
With the Twins on a road trip, Ryan had returned to Minnesota to see the team doctor after he was hit hard in a loss to the Kansas City Royals on Tuesday.
"Encouraging that it's nothing serious," Twins manager Derek Shelton told reporters Thursday, according to MLB.com. "I think we're just going to have to wait and see.
"We've just got to wait and see how he feels. I think as he's talked about, and I've talked about, he looks like he's been out of sync and hasn't felt right. So I think part of it is going to be just how he feels. We'll sit down and talk as a group about what are the steps forward."
The All-Star right-hander has taken losses in his past three starts. His latest setback came Tuesday against the AL Central-worst Royals, as he allowed five runs (four earned) and seven hits in 5⅓ innings.
Ryan sits at 6-8 for the year with a 3.65 ERA.
Any loss of Ryan is significant for a Twins team in the thick of the AL wild-card race. Minnesota entered its game Thursday night in Kansas City one game back of the third and final wild-card spot.