Lane Thomas is out of the Nationals lineup for the second straight night after receiving an injection in his back, but the outfielder expects to be back playing this weekend.
Thomas was encouraged by results of the MRI he received Tuesday, saying it did not show any injury of significance.
“Just a little inflammation in a few areas,” he said. “Got an injection. You just can’t do anything for 48 hours after that, so I should be good for Friday or maybe Saturday.”
Thomas admitted his back had been a minor issue for a while, but it flared up on him while making a throw one week ago in Toronto. He was held out of the lineup the following night but returned to play the rest of the weekend against the Marlins and wound up homering three straight days.
When the back was still bothering him after all that, Thomas was sent for Tuesday’s MRI and missed the Nationals’ series opener against the Mets.