Hamstring strain sends Rays’ Franco to 10-day IL

Tampa Bay shortstop Wander Franco, a Rookie of the Year candidate in the American League, was placed on the 10-day injured list and will be sidelined for at least two weeks because of a hamstring issue, manager Kevin Cash said Saturday.

Franco, 20, is hitting .285 with seven homers and 36 RBIs since being promoted from Triple-A Durham on June 22. His 39-game on-base streak is four games shy of the majorleague record for a player 20 or younger set by Frank Robinson in 1956.

Among AL rookies, Franco was second to teammate Randy Arozarena in WAR entering Saturday, according to baseball-reference.com.

Franco felt his hamstring tighten as he went from first to third on a double Friday. He left the game immediately.

“I felt it when I pushed off

second for third base.” Franco said after the game. “That’s a play where I normally score.”

Franco is “frustrated, disappointed, but I think (he’s) also understanding of the situation and how important he is,” Cash told MLB.com Saturday. “We’re not going to let him turn whatever grade (the strain is) rated at into a higher grade, or pull the thing where he misses a substantial amount of time.”

Medical report: San Diego infielder Jake Cronenworth, third on the team with 20 home runs and 63 RBIs, suffered a fractured left ring finger when he was hit by a pitch Friday and may be headed to the IL. The San Diego Union

Tribune reported that the injury will mean that Fernando Tatis Jr. is moving back to shortstop from the outfield, where he has been playing since suffering a shoulder injury in late July . ... Detroit left-hander Matthew Boyd, scratched from his scheduled start Friday because of elbow soreness, was placed on the 10-day IL. Also landing on the IL was Philadelphia outfielder Travis Jankowski (foot contusion) and Pittsburgh left-hander Steven Brault (lat strain). ... Red Sox utilityman Danny Santana, activated from the COVID-19 IL on Wednesday, was returned to the list Saturday.

Feeling better: Philadelphia outfielder Matt Joyce was activated from the IL. The list of players activated also includes St. Louis pitcher Justin Miller. ... Toronto third baseman Cavan Biggio, pitchers Corey Oswalt and Jordan Yamamoto and catcher Tomas Nido of the Mets, and Seattle outfielder Jake Fraley were among the MLB players who began rehab assignments.

Briefly: Right-hander Vince Velasquez was designated for assignment by Philadelphia . ... Reliever Neftali Feliz cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Oklahoma City by the Dodgers . ... Arozarena and Colorado pitcher Robert Stephenson were activated from the paternity list.