CHICAGO — Seattle Mariners designated hitter Nelson Cruz wants you to ignore what you see. He insists his sore right knee “is getting better.”
Cruz has battled a sore knee since July 1, when he jammed it on a slide at second base in Anaheim while trying to stretch a single into a double. He missed one game, then was limited to pinch-hitting duty in another before returning to the lineup.
He’s been limping ever since.
“He says he feels better when he runs (harder),” manager Scott Servais said. “When he’s going at — I don’t even call it half speed — it looks like it hurts really bad.”
Cruz insists otherwise.
“At least I’m running better,” he said. “Or even walking better. When I get to third base, I feel it a little bit. Running around the bases is good until I get to third base.”
The injury came just as Cruz appeared recovered from a small tear in his right calf muscle, which similarly limited his running.
None of it seems to affect his hitting.
Cruz hit the game-winning home run in the 10th inning of Sunday’s 6-5 victory over the Chicago White Sox — his second HR in as many games — and leads the majors with 73 RBI while batting .292 with 19 homers.
Cruz’s ailing knee and an injury to right fielder Mitch Haniger make it unlikely the Mariners will shorten their bench Tuesday if, as expected, they need to clear roster space to recall right-hander Sam Gaviglio from Triple-A Tacoma.
The Mariners’ current roster configuration has just four starting pitchers, which means they will need a fifth one, presumably Gaviglio, for Tuesday’s game at Houston.
Haniger is expected to miss a few days after suffering a bruised right index finger Saturday on a bunt attempt. He’s available to pinch-run, if necessary, for Cruz but appears otherwise limited in availability.
“It doesn’t feel too great,” Haniger said, “but, hopefully, in a couple of days, it’ll be good. The ball ran in, got my finger and smashed it against the bat.
“The rest of the at-bat was fine, but I couldn’t get anything on a throw. That’s why I had to come out. I didn’t feel I could throw a guy out at home in a big situation. The last thing I want to do is to let a pitcher down.”
Haniger’s injury should keep outfielder Boog Powell around for a little longer. Powell has just eight at-bats in 10 games since his July 2 recall from Tacoma. Six of those at-bats came July 2-3 when Cruz was out of the lineup.
Barring further injuries, the need to keep Powell leaves reliever Emilio Pagan as the likely candidate to be sent to Tacoma to clear space for Gaviglio. Pagan pitched 2 1/3 innings in Sunday’s win, his first appearance since being recalled July 7.
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