As the old, unfortunately fitting cliche goes, Curtis Granderson and the New York Yankees can't catch a break when it comes to injuries this season.
In Granderson's case, that's because he's found himself in the wrong place at the wrong time on two different occasions, and has been unable to avoid the two stray pitches that immediately sent him to the x-ray table.
The first came on Feb, 24 when Granderson was struck on the right forearm by Toronto Blue Jays hurler J.A. Happ. That ended up costing him all of spring training and the first 38 games of the regular season before his return on May 14. Now, just ten short days later, Granderson is headed right back to the disabled list after being hit on the left hand by Cesar Ramos during Friday night's 9-4 win over the Tampa Bay Rays.
Much like the first injury, it was a pitch from a left-hander that rode in on the lefty swinging Granderson. He committed early, and got clipped right on the bottom side of the hand before he could pull back. The result this time was a broken knuckle on his left pinkie finger that will cost him at least four weeks. That's the early estimation anyway, and that doesn't seem all that likely to come down.
It's another rough blow for the Yankees offense to be sure, though we've seen them survive the lack of Granderson, Mark Teixeira, Alex Rodriguez and Derek Jeter through nearly two months. It's probably a tougher blow for Granderson, who spent so much time sitting helplessly on the sideline only to return and suffer a similar type injury. One can only imagine that frustration.
And would you believe that wasn't the only injury concern for New York on the evening? Starting pitcher David Phelps, who had been very effective into the eighth inning, was struck on his pitching arm by a Ben Zobrist line drive. X-rays there were negative, and the official diagnosis for Phelps is a bruised right forearm. But goodness, it's one thing after another for New York, and I'm not sure their fans have been able to exhale (despite the success) since spring training began.
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You've gone to the driving range before. But have you ever gone to the driving range the way Toronto Blue Jays sluggers Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion recently went to the driving range?
In this newest video offering from the MLB Fan Cave, the two ball-crushing Blue Jays visited Chelsea Piers driving range in New York City, with their bats at their side. And they did some driving all right — walloping baseballs while people next to them sliced at golf balls. They were knocking balls 400-plus feet off underhand tosses. Then they tried to play a game of accuracy, seeing who could be first to hit a golf cart. Watch the video to see who won.
Makes you want to play a game of baseball-golf now, huh? Us too. That might not be a real thing, but it should be. Until it becomes one, here are a couple amateur baseball-golf mash-ups for you to enjoy.
Now go out and use the three-day weekend to create a new sport.
Baseball is back. Don't miss anything.
Follow @MikeOz and @bigleaguestew, on Twitter, along with the BLS Facebook page.
Bluebird BanterSean Nolin managed just four outs in his big league debut, and the Jays' bats left too many aboard to come back.
This week in Aspiring Jays, we look at the process that determines which young players will become the newest Blue Jays prospects. This year's draft will be held between June 6th and June 8th, less than two weeks from now.
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