Phillies slugger Hoskins goes down with torn ACL
Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Rhys Hoskins needs surgery for a torn ACL after injuring his left knee Thursday fielding a grounder in a spring training game and is expected to miss a significant amount of time.
The Phillies did not say when Hoskins would have the surgery or exactly how long the slugging first baseman might be sidelined.
Hoskins hit 30 homers with 79 RBIs last season for the reigning National League champions.
He was backing up to play a chopper on Thursday when the ball popped out of his glove. Sooner after, he fell to the ground and began clutching his left knee. Teammates gathered around him before he was taken off of the field.
Hoskins, a free agent at the end of the season who turned 30 last week, hit six homers in Philadelphia’s playoff run last season. The Phillies lost to the Houston Astros in the World Series.
The injury was another blow for the Phillies, who will be without top pitching prospect Andrew Painter for another few weeks because of a sprained ligament in his right elbow. And slugger Bryce Harper isn’t expected back until around the AllStar break after undergoing Tommy John surgery. CARDINALS: Adam Wainwright was in line for his seventh opening day start. Instead, the veteran St. Louis Cardinals right-hander will begin what’s slated to be his final season on the injured list with a groin injury.
Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol told reporters Thursday before St. Louis’ spring training game against the New York Yankees that Wainwright could miss several weeks.
The 41-year-old apparently strained his groin in a workout before Team USA lost to Japan 3-2 in the championship game of the World Baseball Classic on Tuesday. Wainwright went 2-0 with a 2.25 ERA over eight innings to help the U.S. reach the final.
“We’ll continue to evaluate over the next few days but no timetable at the moment,” Marmol said, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “There is a spot in the rotation now open, and we’re going to have to sit down and make sure that we’re not missing anything that goes into that.”
Wainwright has gone 195-117 with a 3.38 ERA over 17 seasons with the Cardinals. He’s a three-time All-Star who’s posted two 20-win seasons, along with winning two Gold Gloves.
BRAVES: Atlanta Braves closer Raisel Iglesias will open the season on the injured list due to right shoulder inflammation, the team said Thursday.
The Braves say an MRI showed the right-hander has “low-grade” inflammation and will not throw for seven days.
Iglesias was expected to move into the closer’s role after Kenley Jansen signed with the Boston Red Sox. Iglesias, 33, had a combined 17 saves last season for the Los Angeles Angels and Atlanta.
With the Braves, Iglesias allowed only one earned run in 28 appearances for a 0.34 ERA with one save while serving mainly in a set-up role for Jansen. Left-hander A.J. Minter and right-hander Joe Jiménez, acquired from Detroit in the offseason, are among the candidates to handle save situations at the start of the season.