Carlos Gonzalez is struggling to play through knee problems - MLB

Rockies outfielder Carlos Gonzalez continues to play through knee tendinitis that has bothered him all season and it’s starting to show in his performance.

Gonzalez is hitting .275 with seven homers and an .803 OPS, which would be very good for most players. However, that would be his lowest batting average in a full season by 20 points and his lowest OPS in a full season by 78 points. Beyond that he’s also attempted just two stolen bases in 42 games after stealing 21, 20, 20, and 26 bases in the previous four years.

Here’s what Gonzalez told Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post about the status of his knee:

I feel a little better; still fighting with that knee. I think it’s showing in stolen bases. It’s kind of slowed down a lot. But I continue to get treatment every day and hopefully it gets better and I can bring that speed back to the club. …

Sometimes, thinking about my hitting mechanics, and sometimes it bothers me (there) too. To have the leg kick and sit on that knee. When I’m having that pain, even without trying, my reaction is to just get (off) of that knee and jump out front. It’s causing me problems in the batter’s box. But like I said, I’m fighting with that, trying to do anything possible to stay in the lineup every day.

Gonzalez has played in 42 of 45 games for the Rockies, but based on those quotes at some point you’ve got to figure a little extra time off might help him stay productive all season long.

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CINCINNATI — The Los Angeles Dodgers placed pitcher Noah Syndergaard on the 15-day injured list Thursday with a blister on the index finger of his right throwing hand.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said the timetable for Syndergaard’s return is unknown despite the 15-day designation.

“The physical, the mental, the emotional part, as he’s talked about, has taken a toll on him,” Roberts said. “So, the ability to get him away from this. He left today to go back to Los Angeles to kind of get back to normalcy.”

Syndergaard allowed six runs and seven hits in three innings against the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday night, raising his ERA to 7.16.

Syndergaard (1-4) has surrendered at least five runs in three straight starts.

Syndergaard has been trying to return to the player he was before Tommy John surgery sidelined him for the better part of the 2020 and 2021 seasons.

Roberts said Syndergaard will need at least “a few weeks” to both heal and get away from baseball and “reset.”

“I think searching and not being comfortable with where he was at in the moment is certainly evident in performance,” Roberts said. “So hopefully this time away will provide more clarity on who he is right now as a pitcher.

“Trying to perform when you’re searching at this level is extremely difficult. I applaud him from not running from it, but it’s still very difficult. Hopefully it can be a tale of two stories, two halves when he does come back.”