The Pittsburgh Pirates announced Friday they have placed infielder Yoshitomo Tsutsugo on the 10-day injured list with a lumbar muscle strain.
Pittsburgh manager Derek Shelton said he was unsure whether the Japanese slugger would need more than the minimum 10 days to recover after trying to play through the injury.
"Right now, we think it's in the shorter term," Shelton said. "But over the next couple days, when we have a better idea of how he's moving, we'll have a better idea on that."
"I give Yoshi a ton of credit because he's been battling and grinding through it."
The former standout for the Yokohama DeNA BayStars of Japan's Central League is averaging .177 with 15 RBIs and two home runs through 35 games. His 10-day spell on the injured list started retroactively Wednesday.