Hernandez could miss additional time with calf strain

Felix Hernandez's freak celebration injury may keep him out longer than initially thought.

The Seattle Mariners ace has been on the disabled list since June 1 after straining his calf while celebrating a home run in the dugout. It was initially expected he'd miss only the requisite 15 days of his DL stint, which is set to expire Sunday. Now the team believes he may need more time to recuperate, though an exact timetable was not given.

"It’s going to take some time," manager Scott Servais told Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune. "He’s still feeling it. He’s not running or anything like that. I’d like to get his arm activated so we don’t lose too much time there."

Hernandez didn't give reporters much of an update on how he's feeling, only saying that he's "got to see the doctor."

Servais said he trusts the veteran will be able to quickly recover his arm strength if and when he's ready to return to the active roster. That won't happen until Hernandez is cleared for baseball activities, which depends on the status of the pitcher's leg.

"You've got to wait until the point where his legs feel good before we make any decisions there," Servais said.

Hernandez hasn't pitched since May 27, when he gave up six runs against the Minnesota Twins.