Houston Astros reliever Brad Peacock has contracted hand, foot and mouth disease, A.J. Hinch announced on Tuesday. After the Astros arrived in Detroit on Monday for a three-game series, Peacock reported worsening symptoms to the team's medical staff and flew back to Houston Tuesday.
Brad Peacock has been sent home to Houston with hand, foot and mouth disease.
— Brian McTaggart (@brianmctaggart) September 11, 2018
Peacock is now the third MLB pitcher to catch the disease this season. Both Noah Syndergaard of the New York Mets and J.A. Happ of the New York Yankees had stints on the 10-day disabled list due to the virus.
According to Mayo Clinic, hand, foot and mouth disease is a virus commonly seen in toddlers and young children and it's very contagious, but can be prevented by frequent hand washing and avoiding contact with those infected. The virus causes symptoms like fever, sore throat, rashes on the hands and feet and more.
"We deal with similar things like this all the time, maybe not to this extent," Hinch told Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle. "I'm not sure why this has become a thing in Major League Baseball this year. There's a running joke inside about having to sanitize everything, but I'm not aware of any sort of precautions we've taken."
Peacock, 30, is 2-4 with a 2.98 ERA, 1.07 WHIP and 90 strikeouts in 60 innings this year. The right-hander was moved back to a relief role in August after filling Lance McCullers Jr.'s spot in the Astros' rotation. The defending World Series champions have a three-game lead over the Oakland Athletics in the American League West.