The New York Yankees had just welcomed outfielder Curtis Granderson back into the lineup after an injury forced him out of action for the early part of the 2013 season, but on Friday night against the Tampa Bay Rays, the 32-year-old had another medical scare.
UPDATE: Saturday, May 25, at 1 p.m ET by Michael Cahill
MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch is reporting that Granderson is headed to the DL:
—End of update—
UPDATE: Friday, May 24, at 10:46 p.m. ET by Ian Hanford
According to MLB.com reporter Bryan Hoch, Granderson will miss a minimum of four weeks:
—End of update—
UPDATE: Friday, May 24, at 9:50 p.m. ET by Ian Hanford
According to New York Daily News reporter Mark Feinsand, Granderson has a fracture in the fifth metacarpal of his left pinky finger:
—End of update—
Hit on the left hand by a pitch in the top half of the fifth inning by Rays reliever Cesar Ramos, Granderson did not return to the outfield for the bottom half of the frame.
ESPN’s Buster Olney tweeted as Granderson left the lineup:
Bryan Hoch of MLB.com then reported that Ichiro had replaced Granderson in right field:
Granderson was originally forced out of the lineup prior to the season after a fastball thrown by Toronto Blue Jays starter J.A. Happ drilled him on the right forearm.
As Jack Curry later noted on Twitter, the way teammates were patting him on the back in the dugout could indicate a serious malady that will need attention in the next few days:
He made his return to the lineup on May 14 against the Seattle Mariners, going 0-for-3 with a walk and a run scored in his first MLB action of the 2013 season.
Playing in seven other games since, Granderson had seven hits (one home run) in 26 at-bats heading into Friday night’s showdown with Tampa Bay. He was 0-for-2 when he exited with the hand injury, but did come around to score in the fifth after being struck.
Granderson is a career .262 hitter and has 211 home runs during his time in the pros.
Traded to the Yankees prior to the 2010 season, Granderson had no problem staying healthy during his first three seasons in pinstripes. He played in 156 and 160 games, respectively, during the past two seasons and was an All-Star in both.
He also led the league in runs scored and RBI during the 2011 campaign.
As Olney noted on Twitter, this would be the definition of bad luck for the Grandy Man if he is forced to return to the disabled list due to an injury that is similar in nature to the one that originally forced him out of the lineup:
After Granderson exited the game and headed to the locker room after the inning, all we can do now is await the news of further tests on his left hand to see what the diagnosis might be.
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