Royals’ Alex Rios fractures hand, placed on DL
Kansas City Royals outfielder Alex Rios diagnosed with a left hand fracture and will be placed on the disabled list. This timetable for his return is unclear.
Royals outfielder Alex Rios fractured his left hand in yesterday’s 12-3 win over the Minnesota Twins and will be placed on the disabled list, according to the Kansas City Star. The Royals have not yet provided a timetable for his return .
Rios was removed in the eighth inning of yesterday’s game after being hit by a 93-mph fastball from Minnesota reliever J.R. Graham.
Alex Rios suffered a fracture in his left hand. He will be placed on the disabled list. No timetable yet for his return.
— Andy McCullough (@ByMcCullough) April 14, 2015
According to the Royals, the injury is a non-displaced fracture of Rios’ fifth metacarpal. The team is expected to make a roster move to replace the right fielder prior to Wednesday game against the Twins at Target Field. Jarrod Dyson, who made multiple appearances in the 2014 playoffs, is a likely replacement for Rios.
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Rios’ absence is a significant loss for the Royals, who have surprised Major League Baseball with a 7-0 start to the season. Rios, who replaced Nori Aoki in right field, has logged one home run and nine hits in his first seven games with Kansas City. He has also played well defensively, rising to the level of fellow outfielders Lorenzo Cain and Alex Gordon.
The Royals, the reigning American League Champions, took sole position of first place in the American League Central with yesterday’s win.
Though the Royals were the darling of the baseball world a mere six months ago, things appear to be different early in the 2015 season. Rios became the 12th Royal to be hit with a pitch this year, that’s an average of almost two per game.
Manager Ned Yost voiced his displeasure with this trend yesterday, “you’re always tired of it,” he said. “Guys are going to have to start exhibiting better command. It was, what, two more today? Yeah, we’re getting tired of it.”
The Royals, baseball’s only remaining undefeated team, seem to have a target on their back, both literally and figuratively.
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