Jonathan India goes on the IL with left foot plantar fasciitis

LOS ANGELES (CINCINNATI ENQUIRER) - As Cincinnati Reds second baseman Jonathan India battled what he called the worst slump of his career, he quietly was playing through left foot plantar fasciitis. After that heel pain reached a new level over the weekend, the Reds placed India on the 10-day injured list on Sunday.

“The pain was fine, I was dealing with it,” India said. “But (Saturday) is where it got me. I can’t make this worse. If it’s worse, I’m out the whole year. Thank God I got it before it got worse.”

In a corresponding move, the Reds called up outfielder Stuart Fairchild.

Over the last month, India was hitting .233 with a .702 OPS, and he moved down to fifth in the Reds’ batting order. India’s slash line ticked up over the last week, and he ended up playing even better as the injury got worse.

India is hopeful that he’ll miss the minimum amount of time and return in the middle of August.

“There’s just inflammation I need to get rid of,” India said. “The safest way for me is to go on the IL and be sure I come back at 100% and not 80%. Also for my career, this can be a very scary injury if it gets worse. Thank God that I caught it.”

Before India’s injury, Reds manager David Bell used a rotation to give as much playing time as possible to 10 players who look to be everyday players. Without India, Elly De La Cruz will likely start more games at shortstop, Matt McLain will start more games at second base, Spencer Steer will play more third base and the Reds will have a more consistent outfield against right-handed pitchers of Jake Fraley, TJ Friedl and Will Benson.

This story is from our media partner, The Cincinnati Enquirer.

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