Giants: San Francisco’s Omar Vizquel played his 2,584th game at shortstop, breaking the major league record previously held by fellow Venezuelan Luis Aparicio. Vizquel tied the record in the opener of a doublheader Sunday in Florida and received a standing ovation from the Marlins crowd when it became official after the fifth inning of the second game.
“I was very emotional and very proud,” Vizquel said. “I can’t enjoy it as much as I might be able to if we won. It was a big moment for me.”
Vizquel, whose teammates stayed in the dugout as he took the field for the sixth, tipped his hat to the crowd and bowed to acknowledge the ovation.
“I appreciate them doing that,” he said. “I have a lot of friends here in Miami and it made it very special.”
INDIANS: Pitcher Fausto Carmona is expected to be sidelined four weeks with a strained left hip.
An MRI exam revealed a moderate strain of an exterior muscle in Carmona’s left hip, Lonnie Soloff, Cleveland’s head athletic trainer, said Sunday.
“The good news is that there was no damage to the interior, which would have been much more serious,” Soloff said. “If all goes well, Fausto should be able to start playing catch in about seven days.”
Carmona emerged as one of the AL’s top pitchers a year ago when he compiled a 19-8 record and 3.06 ERA. This year, he went 4-1 with a 2.25 ERA through his first nine starts before giving up six runs in two innings Friday night in a 13-9 loss to the Texas Rangers.
The 24-year-old right-hander strained his hip in the third inning when he covered first base on a grounder hit by the Rangers’ David Murphy.
The Indians are expected to activate right-hander Jake Westbrook to take Carmona’s place in the rotation.
Westbrook has been out since April 22 with a strained muscle near his left ribcage.
YANKEES: Catcher Jorge Posada expects to play four or five games in extended spring training as he continues to rehabilitate his injured throwing shoulder.
Posada is headed to Tampa, Fla., where he will hit and catch but not be allowed to throw during the first two games. If all goes according to plan, he’ll add the throwing in his third game.
Manager Joe Girardi said Sunday he hopes to have Posada back within two weeks. Posada indicated it could be as early as June 3, when the Yankees start their next homestand.
The five-time All-Star hasn’t played since April 26. Posada was batting .302 with one homer and 11 RBI in 63 at-bats after signing a $52.4 million, four-year contract during the offseason.
PIRATES: Shortstop Jack Wilson will spend extra time at Class AA Altoona on a rehabilitation assignment but still plans to rejoin the Pirates in Cincinnati on Tuesday. Wilson, out of the Pittsburgh lineup with a strained left calf since April 3, hoped to return to the Pirates as early as Sunday. After talking with club officials, he asked to play additional rehab games at Altoona on Sunday and today to help regain his timing at the plate.
ROCKIES: Colorado placed left fielder Matt Holliday on the 15-day disabled list. Holliday strained his hamstring running out a groundout to third in the ninth inning of the Rockies’ 9-2 loss to the New York Mets on Saturday.
BRAVES: Third baseman Chipper Jones was not in the starting lineup for Sunday’s game against Arizona due to back spasms. Jones, hitting .417 to lead the major leagues, said he first felt the back pain below his left shoulder while playing with his children on Saturday night. He said he arrived at Turner Field about 8:30 a.m. for a back adjustment, which relieved some discomfort.
UMPIRE: The Philadelphia-Houston game was delayed on Sunday when plate umpire Jerry Crawford was struck in the head by Carlos Lee’s bat.
Lee fouled off a 2-2 pitch from Cole Hamels in the first inning and his bat smacked Crawford on the follow-through. Crawford took off his helmet and immediately jogged to the Astros dugout, where trainers Dave Labossiere and Rex Jones met him on the steps.
Crawford had a bloody gash on the left side of his head and Labossiere put a white towel over it before leading Crawford into the Astros clubhouse.
He was taken to a hospital for tests but didn’t need stitches and was back at the ballpark before the game ended with an ice pack on his head.
After a 12-minute delay, first-base umpire Rob Drake took over behind the plate and the game resumed.
On the second pitch after the delay, Lee hit a three-run homer to put the Astros up 3-0.
Associated Press
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