Lonnie Chisenhall Returns to Action
By Editorial Staff
As expected, Lonnie Chisenhall returned tonight for the Cleveland Indians. Chisenhall is back at the hot corner and batting 9th for the Tribe.
The rookie has been out since June 7th after being hit in the face by a pitch by Blue Jays’ starter Carlos Villanueva. Chisenhall sustained a sinus fracture but has since recovered to the point where he is back in action as the second half resumes tonight.
According to MLB.com, the 22 year old doesn’t exactly look like the picture of health. Chisenhall’s right eye is red and bruised, but he says it appears worse than it really is.
"“The first two or three days were really bad,” Chisenhall said, “but now the swelling is pretty much gone. I just have the redness around the eye, but that won’t be gone for about a month or so.”"
As the Rangers did after Marlon Byrd got beaned, the Indians made some adjustments to Chisenhall’s batting helmet. A piece was added to protect the third baseman’s cheek.
The incident understandably had an impact on Villanueva as the pitcher reached out to Chisenhall this past week. He told Chisenhall he was simply trying to come in on him and it got away. There are no hard feelings between the two.
Chisenhall was able to return to action after passing a vision test and showing no signs of sustaining a concussion.
For more on the Indians, be sure to check out Deep Left Field.