Shane Victorino to DL with Strained Thumb
By Editorial Staff
Philadelphia has placed center fielder Shane Victorino on the disabled list with a sprained ligament in his thumb.
The Flyin’ Hawaiian hopes to only miss the minimum amount of time as the move is retroactive to July 4th.
Victorino injured his hand during what he termed an embarrassing play. During the Phillies series against the Toronto Blue Jays, Victorino made a catch while in center but then tripped and hit the ground hard causing the damage to his thumb.
Originally the center fielder only expected to miss a few games because of the injury.
"“Three days ago, I was definitely optimistic,” Victorino said Friday. “I felt like it was getting better every day, and the swelling was going down, so I thought, ‘OK, maybe just a couple more days.’ But that’s why you take these MRIs. My body might feel one thing, but medically, it showed something else.”"
Those results showed a partial tear of one of the ligaments in his thumb, and doctors estimated Victorino would require two weeks of rest and rehab to get back to playing shape.
While Victorino thought the thumb was improving, he still wasn’t able to in his words “hold a bat or throw anything”, two things that are fairly important when it comes to playing baseball.
Just a day before he was placed on the DL, Victorino was voted to the All-Star game as the last man in for the National League. Even though he’s not going to be able to play in the game, he still hopes to take advantage of the honor fans bestowed upon him.
"“Definitely going to go,” Victorino said Friday afternoon. “I don’t want to [waste] everybody’s efforts and not go. Definitely thank everybody again, the fans. Being the first guy ever selected twice by the final ballot, it’s definitely an honor. Definitely want to go out there and put my Phillies uniform on and represent the Phillies at the All-Star Game. But unfortunately, won’t be playing.”"
On the year, Victorino leads the club in batting average (.303), runs (53) and triples (9). Perhaps most surprising his power surge, as Victorino leads the team in slugging percentage (.524) a number that puts him ahead of more well known sluggers Mark Teixeira and Joey Votto.
To replace Victorino no their roster, the Phillies have recalled infielder Pete Orr. Orr’s played in 26 games for the Phils this season, seeing time mostly at second base.
For more on the Phillies, be sure to check out That Balls Outta Here.