Yankees might have lost Teixeira for season
The New York Yankees fear first baseman Mark Teixeira aggravated a leg injury in an ill-fated sprint to first base, and the severity of his strained left calf will determine if he returns to play this season.
Teixeira returned Saturday night from a 10-day absence, then hurt himself on the final play of New York’s loss to Baltimore.
Asked Sunday if he envisioned Teixeira playing anytime soon, Yankees manager Joe Girardi replied: “No, I don’t think he’ll be a player for us. I’d be surprised, but we’ll just have towait andsee.”
Teixeira is expected to have an MRI today. If his calf is in the same condition as two weeks ago, thenhis return this seasonwill be inquestion.
“That would be worst-case scenario,” he said. “I will have to make sure it is a little more healed thanwhen I came back this time.”
Teixeira acknowledged that he rushed back too soon.
“I’ve got to be a little smarter with it. I just wasn’t ready,” he said. “I thought I could play on it at 80 percent and I couldn’t do it. So when I come back next time, whatever it’s going to be, I amgoing to make sure it’s better than 80. It’s not going to be 100 percent, we know that.”
Teixeira is apprehensive about the examtoday.
“We will see what the MRI shows,” he said. “Make sure there was no other injury or anything. It definitely worries you some.”
Phillies
Ryne Sandberg is back where he started in Philadelphia.
Sandberg is hoping to be more than a September call-up this time.
Sandberg is spending this month on manager Charlie Manuel’s coaching staff after leading the Class AAA Lehigh Iron Pigs to a 75-68 record.
He just finished his sixth season as a minor league manager, his second with the Iron Pigs after four years in theChicago Cubs’ organization, and wants to join a major league staff in 2013.
Sandberg interviewed with the St. Louis Cardinals in the winter and was rebuffed by the Cubs. There’sachancehecould land onManuel’s staff next season if he isn’t hired to manage another team. If not, Sandberg would return to the grueling bus rides and shuffled rosters in theminors.
Cardinals
Right-hander Jake Westbrook will miss his next start due to a strained right oblique muscle. Westbrookwas injured in the fifth inning of a loss SaturdaytoMilwaukee. Westbrook said hewill not accompany the team on its upcoming sevengame road trip, which begins Monday in San Diego. He was scheduled to start Thursday in LosAngeles.
Dodgers
Right-hander Clayton Kershaw was scratched from his start Sunday night for Los Angeles against the National League West Division-leading San Francisco Giants. The Dodgers didn’t immediately provide further details on the reigning NL Cy Young Award winner’s condition, and Kershaw declined to comment before manager Don Mattingly publicly addressed the situation. Right-hander Joe Blanton started in Kershaw’s place.