From the Strib's Joe Christensen:
Twins center fielder Torii Hunter has a broken left ankle and no apparent tendon damage, but he could still miss the rest of the season, test results showed today.
Hunter, who injured the ankle trying to make a first inning catch Friday at Fenway Park, underwent an MRI exam and CT scan of his left foot and ankle Monday.
The good news, according to the team's announcement, was that the results didn't show any evidence of a tendon tear. But it did show a small non-displaced fracture of the talus, or ankle, bone.
Hunter is expected to be on crutches for three to four weeks. Surgery does not appear necessary, but the team gave no timetable for his return.
Hunter, 30, has hit .269 with 14 home runs and 56 RBI this season. He went on the 15-day disabled list after Friday's game. Lew Ford has taken his place in center field.
Boone released
Later Monday afternoon, the Twins called an end to the Bret Boone experiment. Boone, who hit .170 during his stint with the Twins, was cut loose. Taking his place on the roster will be shortstop Jason Bartlett, who started the season as the Twins' everyday shortstop. He was called up from Class AAA Rochester.
Hard to decide if this is good news or bad.
Heal quickly Spiderman-Sweetcheeks, we need your heart and soul badly!
*groans* This week just keeps getting worse and worse.
Posted by: CarrieICL at August 1, 2005 03:04 PMcrap...............
Posted by: SDave at August 1, 2005 03:06 PMActually, as someone who works daily in rehabing injuries, I can tell you it's probabaly good news. Many times, with an ankle, a fracture is "preferable" to the damage that happens when bones do not break. Tears and other soft tissue injuries can be much harder and trickier to heal. It also speaks well of Hunter's durability.
Posted by: PJStP at August 1, 2005 03:10 PMPJStP-- Thank you. It's good to know there's maybe a little bit of a silver lining to this.
Posted by: Katharriet at August 1, 2005 03:14 PMI hate Mondays. What a crappy way to start the week. Heal fast, Torii! We need you!
Posted by: ndtf at August 1, 2005 03:18 PMThanks, PJ. This sentence: "It also speaks well of Hunter's durability." makes me feel a lot better. We need Toriikins around for a while.
Posted by: Angela at August 1, 2005 03:30 PMI think I'm more upset about Torii's injury than any of the recent Cardinals inuries -- and considering Scott Rolen is my backup boyfriend, that's saying something.
Get well soon, Torii.
Posted by: Redbird at August 1, 2005 03:34 PMIt's about what I expected, and my hopes for *this* season have already been reduced to handful of dust and a puff of air, so I guess I'm not that upset about it, although I will regret him not being able to slide into AJ with his spikes up come the next Sox series.
Posted by: Kurtis at August 1, 2005 03:41 PMWhat are the odds they'll play Jacque in CF? I'd love to see him get a shot at it. Though I'm not sure LEWWWWWWWWW has the arm to play right. This season has become one massive buzzkill.
Posted by: TBird41 at August 1, 2005 03:57 PM*sigh*
Posted by: kafumbly at August 1, 2005 03:57 PMBret Boone has been cut by the Twins.
Posted by: T-Mac at August 1, 2005 04:40 PMit's about damn time. plus, Bart's been recalled.
Posted by: kafumbly at August 1, 2005 04:42 PMIf they'd listened to me, there would have been no Bret Boone Experiment. It was a no-brainer.
Posted by: LaurieNY at August 1, 2005 04:50 PMif Torii had gotten hurt a few weeks earlier, i think they would've played JJ in center, because he's qualified to play there and because he's more valuable in CF than in LF/RF because of his offense.
what im trying to say is that he hits like a CF, not a RF (think Steve Finley/Vlad Guerrero in LA). he would've been easier to trade (if they wanted to trade him) as a CF.
I'm glad Boone is going, but still... poor guy. That's terribly embarrassing.
Not the greatest day for baseball.
Posted by: CarrieICL at August 1, 2005 04:59 PMBuh-bye Boone. Welcome back Bartlett.
Posted by: ndtf at August 1, 2005 05:19 PMMan,
Couldn't they have waited until they faced the Indians so the brothers Boone could reunite on the field?
Posted by: Mark at August 1, 2005 05:40 PMI agreee with Mark. This way he would have been able to maybe score a couple of free tickets from his brother to stick around and watch him play.
Does T.R. have no conscience?
Posted by: Brian at August 1, 2005 06:24 PMThe Bret Boone Experiment--is that like the Alan Parsons Project, only with fewer hits?
Seriously, though, a lot of us gave him the benefit of the doubt when the Twins picked him up and he has proven that he is D-U-N done. It's time to move on.
Posted by: mk at August 1, 2005 06:57 PMAs a longtime Mariners fan, I'm sad to see Boone end this way. It wasn't a bad experiment for the Twins, since the cost was really low compared to the possibility that Boone might bounce back, for a little while at least. He was arrogant and annoying at times, but basically a good enough guy, and it's hard not to remember the role he played on the 116 win team for 2001.
On a happier note, thanks to Batgirl, the Twins are no longer just "a team I kinda like a bit more than I like a lot of the others", but my 3rd favorite team, after the Mariners and whoever's playing the Yankees. I even bought the large Batgirl mug! Should be here any day.
So thanks and a fond farewell to Boonie and to y'all... for now.
Ken
Posted by: Gunga at August 1, 2005 08:44 PMI miss Boone already. He had a nice bat collection. Too bad they were all ass-bats.
Posted by: JaerBesan at August 1, 2005 08:48 PMOver at USS Mariner, someone pithily noted that Bret Boone now has as many releases this year as Scott Spiezio has hits.
If the Twins clubshouse is salted with ass-bats, then Louisville Slugger has been shipping El-Lardo bats to Seattle.
Posted by: Steve at August 1, 2005 09:18 PMMk - Not quite. The Alan Parsons Project had 4 hits: "Games People Play", "Eye in the Sky", "Don't Answer Me", and "Time". Boone had 9. However, Boone's 9 hits can't hold a candle to the majesty of the entire "I, Robot" album.
Yours in prog-rock,
Skorch
Posted by: Skorch at August 1, 2005 09:24 PMSkorch, Mk:
Don't forget "Sirius," the musical piece that's best known as the diddy used by the Chicago Bulls during MJ-era player introductions.
"Don't answer me...don't break the silence...don't let me win..."
Posted by: The Jack Morris Mutual Admiration Society at August 1, 2005 10:37 PMCouldn't Booney have been salvaged as spare parts for Torii?
Posted by: The Commish at August 1, 2005 10:48 PMI recommend re-reading that espn page 2 boone-twinkies article by some guest writer after learning this news. Twice the laughs...
Posted by: twinkiefan at August 1, 2005 10:51 PMwell, a girl can hope, can't she?
*sigh* it hurts when hope kicks you in the gut, clubs you over the head, steals your change, and leaves you for dead in an alley.
Posted by: kafumbly at August 2, 2005 07:05 AMSo this was a case of super-really-bad-suicidal bad news and then some finally-it-happened good news?
But I do feel bad for Bret. Not bad enough to keep him, though.
Posted by: Just Beth at August 2, 2005 08:42 AM