Yankees' Betances has spur in shoulder, out another 6-7 weeks

New York Yankees reliever Dellin Betances has a bone spur in his shoulder that will require him to be shut down completely for three weeks, and he isn't likely to return to the majors for six-to-seven weeks, general manager Brian Cashman announced Friday.

Cashman said the spur affecting Betances has been in his shoulder since the Yankees drafted him but it never bothered him until now, according to Lindsey Adler of The Athletic.

Betances received an anti-inflammatory shot for the spur on Saturday.

"There's relief just because there's nothing structurally wrong," he said, according to Bryan Hoch of MLB.com. "I know with this shot that in three weeks, with rest, I know everything will be right and I'm excited to help the team out and finish this season."

It's the second time he's received such treatment after taking an oral anti-inflammatory medicine following his initial injury in March, which didn't fix the problem.

The 31-year-old began the 2019 campaign on the injured list due to the shoulder injury, which affected him during spring training. Betances has struck out at least 100 batters in each of his last five seasons and was once again being counted on as one of the pillars of a dominant Yankees bullpen.

Betances' extended absence is yet another blow to an increasingly injury-riddled Yankees squad. Twelve of their players are currently on the IL due to an array of injuries, including Aaron Hicks, Miguel Andujar, Giancarlo Stanton, and Gary Sanchez, who joined the list Friday with a calf strain.