August Injury Report – Week 3

The following is a list of injuries to players which occurred between August 16th and August 23rd of the SP78 season, with injuries noted by date, team, player, and number of days or weeks missed. (Note: there were no injuries on the 16th)

August 17

NY-N: In the second inning of their game against the Padres, Mets third baseman Lenny Randle aggravated a prior injury to his hip when he stumbled into the visitor’s dugout chasing a foul ball off the bat of Fernando Gonzalez; he would leave the game and be out of action for the next five days.

TEX: In the top of the eighth inning of the Chisox-Rangers match-up at Arlington Stadium, Alan Bannister’s sinking line drive to center fell for a triple when Texas center fielder Juan Beniquez misjudged his diving attempt to make the catch and landed awkwardly on the outfield grass, straining his wrist. The injury would force him to miss the next seven games.

August 18

STL: Cardinals batter Mike Phillips suffered contusions to his right hand when he was struck by a pitch from Braves reliever Dave Campbell during the eighth inning of their game at St Louis. He was replaced by a pinch-runner and would sit out the next four games, but would return in time to participate in the SP78 40th Anniversary game on August 22nd.

August 19

LA: Citing a sudden tightness in his pitching shoulder, Dodgers starter Doug Rau asked manager Tommy Lasorda to remove him from their afternoon contest against the Mets after just one inning of work, after he surrendered a walk to batter Bobby Valentine on four pitches. Rau would miss his next start, and will probably miss one more before returning to the starting rotation later this month.

MIL: Brewers starter Lary Sorensen was the second SP78 pitcher lost to injury today, after he went 4.1 innings before developing a blister on his pitching hand and leaving the game, two outs before he would’ve qualified for the victory in an eventual 7-1 Milwaukee win over Detroit. The blister was deemed serious enough to keep him out of action for at least another start.

August 20

OAK: A long fly ball off the bat of Boston’s Jack Brohamer resulted in a collision between Oakland center fielder Glenn Burke and the outfield wall at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, resulting in a triple for Brohamer and a separated shoulder for Burke, who would be placed on the 30-day disabled list the following day. It would be his second month-long stint on the DL this season, after a collision with teammate Mike Edwards resulted in a thirty-day absence back in April.

August 21

LA: While charging in on a short pop fly off the bat of Montreal’s Ellis Valentine, LA left fielder Dusty Baker clipped shortstop Bill Russell as he backpedaled to make the catch; the ball dropped untouched, allowing Valentine to race to second with a double, while both defensemen remained prone on the outfield grass. Russell was not injured and remained in the game, but Baker was helped off the field with an unspecified leg injury, and will likely be out the rest of the month.

SF: The Giants also lost an outfielder to injury after a collision with a shortstop, as Terry Whitfield will be out for at least a week after running into teammate Roger Metzger as they converged on a shallow fly ball during the fourth inning of their game against the Mets at Shea Stadium. Whitfield was replaced by Jim Dwyer, while Metzger was unscathed and continued the game at short.

August 22

DET: Tigers outfielder Steve Kemp will miss the next few games after landing roughly on the hard Metropolitan Stadium turf while diving for a line shot by Roy Smalley in the fifth, which skipped past him and went to the wall for a triple. X-rays were taken of his right wrist and elbow as a precaution, but no breaks or fractures were found.

August 23

DET: After losing an outfielder to injuries yesterday, the Tigers will be without the services of two more players, after center fielder Ron LeFlore and second baseman Steve Dillard were both hurt when they collided during the second inning of their Game 1 match-up against the visiting Blue Jays. The batter, Roy Howell, made it to second on the play; LeFlore is expected to return to the lineup soon, but Dillard will be placed on the 30-day DL due to his injuries, which have yet to be specified by the team.

MIN: In the first game of a doubleheader between Texas and Minnesota, with Mike Hargrove batting in the sixth, Twins third baseman Mike Cubbage was injured when he chased a pop-up into foul territory and slammed into a metal railing near the Ranger dugout. Not only did he fail to make the catch, but his left knee struck the rail in the process, prompting his immediate departure from the game. There has been no report on what type of injury he suffered, but sources say he will be out for at least a week.

August Injury Report – Week 2

The following is a list of injuries to players which occurred between August 8th and August 15th of the SP78 season, with injuries noted by date, team, player, and number of days or weeks missed. (Note: there were no injuries on the 11th or 12th)

August 8

LA:  While sitting in the dugout talking with pitching coach Red Adams, relief pitcher Charlie Hough was struck on the arm by a foul line drive off the bat of Padres shortstop Ozzie Smith, the second batter of the game. Hough was not hurt, but for precautionary reasons, he was not used in the game, and would be cleared to play the following day.

CLE: In the first inning of their game against the Red Sox, Indians batter Jim Norris was struck on his right wrist by a pitch from Luis Tiant; he was replaced by a pinch-runner and left the game. X-rays showed no breaks or fractures, but Norris would miss four more games due to bruising of the scaphoid area.

August 9

SF: During pre-game warm-ups, outfielder Larry Herndon pulled a thigh muscle while running wind sprints and would not participate in that afternoon’s contest. He would return to action the following day.

August 10

OAK: In the second inning of their game against the Angels at Anaheim, A’s rookie Dell Alston ran into first baseman Ron Jackson while rounding the bag after his base hit, and left the game with an unspecified injury. He would miss seven games with what would later be classified as ‘lower body trauma’.

CAL: In the same game, Angels outfielder Lyman Bostock was injured chasing a shallow fly ball off the bat of A’s slugger Rico Carty, a violent collision that again involved first baseman Ron Jackson. Bostock would be lost for a week due to minor head injuries and dizziness, while Jackson was unhurt and remained in the game. It was Bostock’s fourth injury of the SP78 season, good for 22 games missed.

August 13

NY-N: Another collision between a team’s first baseman and right fielder occurred in a match-up between the Cardinals and Mets at Shea Stadium; in the seventh, a routine fly to right by Dane Iorg fell for a double when Mets outfielder Elliott Maddox slammed into first baseman Willie Montanez, knocking both men to the ground. Montanez was not injured, but Maddox had to be helped off the field, and would be placed on the 15-day disabled list the following day due to a severe neck sprain.

SF: In the sixth inning of a Giants-Dodgers game at Dodger Stadium, Giants reliever Charlie Williams faced just one batter, walking Lee Lacy on four pitches, before signaling to manager Joe Altobelli that he needed to be taken out. He’d go on the 15-DL the next day, suffering from back spasms.

August 14

CHI-N: Once again, a first baseman and a right fielder collided while chasing a fly ball, sending one man to the disabled list: Bill Buckner, who had settled under a pop-up from Braves batter Darrel Chaney, but never made the play when outfielder Jerry White crashed into him from behind, allowing the ball to drop as both fielders crumbled to the grass. Only Buckner left the game; he was placed on the 15-day DL with what the Cubs team physician described as ‘slight damage and contusions to the back and neck’.

MIN: In one of the more unlikely injuries of the season, Twins starter Gary Serum left the game against the Indians after just 1.1 innings pitched, due to the after-affects of food poisoning. He’d been stricken a few days earlier, and had felt well enough to make the start, but the exertion of pitching just one inning drained him of all energy, and he quickly became both exhausted and nauseated. He would miss one more start before feeling ready to pitch again.

August 15

HOU: In his first day back after coming off the disabled list, outfielder Denny Walling pulled a calf muscle while taking his cuts during pre-game batting practice, and sat out that day’s game against the Cardinals. He returned to action—albeit as a pinch-hitter—the following day.

MON: Lance Parrish joined the growing list of players running into first basemen after base hits, doing so in the fourth inning of Montreal’s game against the Giants at Olympic Stadium. Parrish would depart for a pinch-runner and would miss the next three games with a knee injury, the result of falling to the stadium’s hard artificial turf after the collision. Mike Ivie, the recipient of Parrish’s wayward impact, remained in the game.

NY-N:  First baseman Willie Montanez was out for three games after chasing a foul off the bat of Padres batter Jerry Turner at Shea Stadium and stumbling into the home dugout, where he twisted his left ankle. X-rays were negative.

SEA: M’s shortstop Craig Reynolds collided with left fielder Tom Paciorek during their game against the Orioles at the Kingdome in Seattle; Reynolds was the only player hurt, and left the game with a strained shoulder. The injury was severe enough to land him on the 15-day disabled list.

August Injury Report – Week 1

The following is a list of injuries to players which occurred between August 1st and August 7th of the SP78 season, with injuries noted by date, team, player, and number of days or weeks missed. (Note: there were no injuries on the 1st or 2nd)

August 3

HOU: Outfielder Jose Cruz was injured diving for a fly ball during an exhibition game at Watt Powell Park in Charleston, West Virginia, and missed the remainder of the exhibition contest, as well as three regular season games. Medical reports indicated a ligament strain in the right ankle area, but a tear wasn’t ruled out, and Cruz returned to Houston ahead of the team for more examinations. It will be the third time this season Cruz has been out of action due to injury.

LA: Outfielders Dusty Baker and Billy North collided while chasing a deep fly ball off the bat of SF first baseman Willie McCovey, in the second game of a twinbill at Candlestick Park; Baker was put on the 15-day disabled list, while North was placed on the 30-day DL.

August 4

MON: Starting pitcher Ross Grimsley pulled a muscle in his pitching arm on the first pitch of the game against the Cubs at Wrigley Field, and left the game immediately. He will be out for 1-2 weeks.

NY-N: Mets outfielder Steve Henderson will be out of action for at least a week after he crashed into the left field wall at Busch Memorial Stadium, while chasing a deep fly ball stroked by Cards batter Tony Scott. The ball bounded away as Henderson dropped to the warning track; he departed the game suffering from sharp pain in his right wrist and elbow.

August 5

SF: Third baseman Darrell Evans and catcher Marc Hill were both hurt after they collided in foul territory while chasing a Bill Russell pop-up during the seventh inning of their game against the Dodgers at Candlestick. Evans was lost for six games; Hill was placed on the 15-day DL the following day.

August 6

CHI-N: In Game 1 of a doubleheader against the Expos, Cubs outfielder Greg Gross crashed into the ivy-covered right field wall of Wrigley Field while tracking a long fly hit by Ellis Valentine, suffering a shoulder injury that placed him on the 21-day disabled list.

DET: Tigers starting pitcher Dave Rozema will be out 1-2 weeks with a pulled hamstring, suffered while pitching in the fourth inning of Detroit’s 9-1 win over the White Sox at Tiger Stadium. Rozema left after the fourth, replaced by Jim Slaton, and did not qualify for the win.

OAK: In a bizarre incident at Oakland, Game 2 starter Steve Renko was stung on his pitching hand by a wasp while standing on the mound during the game’s first out, and was forced to depart after facing just two batters. It’s likely he’ll miss 1-2 starts while the hand heals.

CLE: Tribe backstop Gary Alexander will miss an estimated one week’s worth of games after a jarring collision with third baseman Buddy Bell strained a tendon in his neck, after both chased a foul off the bat of Rangers batter Jim Sundberg that neither caught. Bell was not injured.

TEX: Rangers speedster Bump Wills was hit on the hand by an inside pitch from Indians pitcher Rick Wise, in the seventh inning of their meeting at Arlington Stadium, and was forced to leave the game to seek medical attention. X-rays proved negative, and Wills returned to action two days later.

August 7

MIN: In a match-up against the Mariners, pitcher Geoff Zahn began to experience swollen fingers on his pitching hand after six innings of work, and was pulled from the game as a precautionary measure by manager Gene Mauch. Zahn will make his next start on August 13th, in a doubleheader against the A’s.

CHI-A: Rookie catcher Mike Colbern was injured in the eighth inning of a game against the Royals when he collided with third baseman Eric Soderholm, while both were chasing a foul pop-up off the bat of Frank White. Soderholm was not hurt, but Colbern suffered two broken bones in his right hand and was placed on the 30-day disabled list.

August Preliminary Report: Blue Jays

• The Blue Jays enjoyed their first winning month of the season in July, going 15-13 and climbing to just 2½ game behind the sixth-place Indians in the AL East. The Jays will wrap up a 2-game series with Detroit on August 1st before taking two days off and traveling to Kansas City for a 3-game weekend set with the Royals.

• Jesse Jefferson was the toast of the Toronto starting staff last month, going 4-1 with a 2.87 ERA; in contrast, he was 4-9 with a 4.82 ERA through June. Another pleasant surprise was Jerry Garvin, a PB 2-5 starter who went 3-2 with a 2.48 ERA and three complete games in July.

• At the other end of the spectrum, reliever Mike Willis allowed four runs in 1/3 of an inning pitched, for an ERA of 120.00, before he was sent to AAA Syracuse.