Padres' Yuki Matsui Suffers Groin Injury, WBC Status Highly Uncertain

San Diego Padres reliever Yuki Matsui's status for the World Baseball Classic with Japan is highly uncertain after he prematurely ended a batting practice session due to left groin tightness. While considered day-to-day and not expected to be a long-term issue, the injury casts significant doubt on his WBC availability, with the opener against Taiwan two weeks away. Padres manager Craig Stammen stated, 'I think it puts the WBC in question.' Matsui, a 30-year-old left-hander with a 3.86 ERA over 125 appearances, could return to playing catch this weekend, but his buildup for the tournament is affected.