An outstanding start to his first full rookie season with the Seattle Mariners has been put on hold for Ladner pitcher James Paxton.
The 25-year-old southpaw left Tuesday's home opener at Safeco Field in the sixth inning with a slightly strained latissmus dorsi muscle behind his left shoulder. Following an MRI on Wednesday that confirmed the extent of the injury, the Mariners' placed him on the 15-day disabled list.
Paxton was still credited with the win as the Mariners rallied from a 3-0 deficit to defeat the Anaheim Angels 5-3. The Delta secondary graduate surrendered back-to-back first inning home runs to Albert Pujols and David Freese before settling down to retire the next 14 batters. He left the game shortly after giving up a lead-off single by Kole Calhoun.
With the win, Paxton is now 2-0 on the season with a 2.25 ERA. Since being called up from Triple-A Tacoma last September, he has a 5-0 record and a 1.75 ERA.
He was brilliant in his 2014 season debut back on April 3 in Anahiem, working seven shutout innings in an 8-2 win over the Angels. He struck out nine, allowed just two hits and four base runners in total.
