Perrotto: How Much is Too Much for Carlos Santana? (+)

The Pittsburgh Pirates insist that Carlos Santana’s injury is not significant and there is no reason, at this point, to believe otherwise.

The 37-year-old first baseman sat out Monday’s 14-4 drubbing by the Giants in San Francisco with lumbar spine muscular tightness. He sustained the injury Sunday during a loss to the Mariners in Seattle.

While the Pirates are downplaying the significance of the injury, any time a player Santana’s age experiences problems with his back it is cause for some concern.

And it should also be a big caution flag for the Pirates to do a better job of limiting Santana’s playing time.