June 2, 200422 yr Wednesday, June 2, 2004 A's third baseman left in 11th inning -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Associated Press OAKLAND, Calif. -- Eric Chavez raised his right arm to show off the new bandage and black brace covering his hand and forearm. "It's broken," the three-time Gold Glove third baseman said late Tuesday as he walked back into the Oakland Coliseum after getting X-rays at a hospital. Chavez left the Athletics' 6-4, 12-inning win over the Chicago White Sox in the 11th after getting hit near his wrist by a pitch from Damaso Marte. It was uncertain how long Chavez will be sidelined. "We just hope for the best," A's manager Ken Macha said before Chavez returned. "We're looking at all the things that could happen both short-term and long-term." Macha spent nearly 30 minutes with A's trainer Admin Davis and several members of the A's front office. General manager Billy Beane was on the phone. Chavez drove in a run Tuesday and was leading the A's with 13 home runs and 35 RBIs. In spring training he signed a six-year contract extension worth $66 million, the biggest deal in franchise history. Marte got ahead of Chavez 0-2 and then threw one inside pitch before hitting Chavez on the back of the hand. Chavez screamed in pain and grabbed his hand. He was tended to by A's trainer Admin Davis before going to first. He was replaced by Marco Scutaro in the field for the top of the 12th. "We just hope for the best," Macha said. "We're looking at all the things that could happen both short-term and long-term." I found a more definitive article on MLB dot c-o-m. Here is the article. It's a broken hand, and it sounds pretty serious. FA, do you know anything about the minor leagers they mention? Chavez out with broken hand 06/02/2004 3:36 AM ET By Mychael Urban / MLB.com OAKLAND -- A's third baseman Eric Chavez, a three-time Gold Glove winner who ranks second in the American League with 13 home runs and leads Oakland with 34 RBIs, told MLB.com early Wednesday morning that he has a broken right hand and will miss "at least" three weeks. Sent to an Alameda, Calif., hospital for X-rays after being hit by a pitch from White Sox southpaw Damaso Marte in the 11th inning of Oakland's 6-4 win Tuesday, Chavez, 26, went home knowing that he'll be going on the disabled list for the second time in his six-year career. "I thought it was going to be fine," Chavez said by phone, two hours after the game ended. "It didn't swell up too bad because after I came out of the game we got some ice on it, so I wasn't too worried about it. I mean, I knew I wasn't going to be able to play [Wednesday] because there's no way I could grip a bat, but I thought maybe I'd be out a couple of days at the most. "Obviously I was wrong." Chavez, whose previous stint on the DL came in 1999 as a result of torn plantar fascia in his right foot, said a pin might have to be inserted in his hand. He didn't ask for, nor did he get, a best-case scenario regarding his return to action. "I've never broken anything in my life," he said, "so I have no idea how long this is going to take. It all just depends on how I heal. It's gonna be at least three weeks, they said, but it could be more." The injury is a huge blow to Oakland's anemic offense, which entered play Tuesday tied with Toronto for the lowest batting average (.247) in the American League with runners in scoring position and ranked 11th among the 14 AL teams in overall batting (.263) and runs scored (227). "Yeah," Chavez said. "It's not good." A's manager Ken Macha, who left the stadium after the game unaware of Chavez's prognosis, had already gotten the bad news when MLB.com reached him by phone later in the night. "Obviously Eric's an important part of our team, offensively and defensively," Macha said. "You've just gotta play on and do the best you can. ... Usually with a broken hand, it takes about six weeks [to heal]." Looking for something positive, Macha pointed to his team's response to the season-ending injury suffered last August by Mark Mulder, who was having a Cy Young-caliber year. The A's played the last month and a half -- about six weeks -- without Mulder and still managed to win the AL West. "Like we had Mulder hurt last year, now we've got Chavvy hurt," Macha said. "Injuries are part of the game." How the A's plan to replace Chavez is unknown. Macha's office was closed for more than a half-hour after Tuesday's game because assistant general manager David Forst, fellow front-office assistant Bryn Alderson, trainer Admin Davis and GM Billy Beane -- all were there in person save Beane, who was conferenced in by phone -- were discussing possible solutions. "You have to consider every scenario," Macha said. In the short-term, it's likely that veteran utilityman Mark McLemore, who started at second base Tuesday, will play third base and Marco Scutaro will take over at second. Other possibilities include a trade, which could prove a challenge, or the promotion of one of Oakland's prospects. Mike Edwards, a 27-year-old with four games of big-league experience who has gotten the bulk of the time at third for Triple-A Sacramento but is listed in the A's media guide as an outfielder, was hitting .313 with five homers, 28 RBIs and a .396 on-base percentage (OBP) through Monday. Adam Morrissey, a 22-year-old who also plays second base and shortstop, was hitting .314 with four homers, 20 RBIs and a .381 OBP for the River Cats. Another option is Esteban German, who played third for the first time this spring and has been up with the big-league club in each of the past three seasons. He played in only three games this year before being sent back to Sacramento, where he was hitting .331 with a .384 OBP through Monday. "I don't know what they're gonna do," Chavez said. "This is pretty brutal."
June 2, 200422 yr Author don't put a smily face when someone breaks their hand, that's just evil :deadhorse :jackass
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