Baseball Guru
03-21-2002, 09:23 PM
By BOB BAUM
AP Sports Writer
March 21, 2002, 5:32 PM EST
TUCSON, Ariz. -- Arizona first baseman Erubiel Durazo was scheduled to undergo surgery Thursday to remove a broken hamate bone in his right wrist.
Durazo, the leading hitter in all of baseball this spring with a .535 average, is expected to be sidelined six weeks, according to specialist Dr. Don Sheridan.
The big left-handed slugger was injured when he swung at and missed a pitch from Dave Lundquist in the sixth inning of Wednesday night's game against the San Diego Padres.
An MRI exam in Phoenix on Thursday showed the break, and surgery was scheduled for later in the afternoon.
Sheridan performed two operations on Durazo's right wrist in 2000, but this injury is not related to that problem, trainer Paul Lessard said.
Durazo was leading all hitters this spring in average, slugging percentage (1.070), on-base percentage (.553) and total bases (46). He was tied with teammate Luis Gonzalez in home runs (six) and tied with Gonzalez for second in RBIs with 16.
"I don't recall in all my years as a player or coach ever seeing a guy as locked in as he has been since the day he got down here to camp," manager Bob Brenly said. "I mean, the numbers he was putting up down here were ridiculous. There hasn't been any one way people have been able to pitch to him. He's hit fastballs, he's hit breaking balls, he's hit changeups. He's hit everything they've thrown up there."
With Greg Colbrunn recovering from arthroscopic elbow surgery, the Diamondbacks find themselves with a shortage of first basemen to back up Mark Grace.
Backup catcher Rod Barajas played many games at first last season at Triple-A Tucson and is the top candidate for the job. Brenly said Craig Counsell also can play first, as can Chris Donnels. Brenly suggested that perhaps Jay Bell could as well.
Grace said he had expected his playing time to drop because Durazo was hitting so well.
"Deservedly so," Grace said. "He was doing so well. You hate to see anything like that."
Durazo's power will be sorely missed in a lineup that already was missing third baseman Matt Williams, out at least until July with a broken ankle.
"We've talked all spring about our versatility," Brenly said. "We thought it was going to be to cover just one position. Now it looks like we may have to cover a couple."
AP Sports Writer
March 21, 2002, 5:32 PM EST
TUCSON, Ariz. -- Arizona first baseman Erubiel Durazo was scheduled to undergo surgery Thursday to remove a broken hamate bone in his right wrist.
Durazo, the leading hitter in all of baseball this spring with a .535 average, is expected to be sidelined six weeks, according to specialist Dr. Don Sheridan.
The big left-handed slugger was injured when he swung at and missed a pitch from Dave Lundquist in the sixth inning of Wednesday night's game against the San Diego Padres.
An MRI exam in Phoenix on Thursday showed the break, and surgery was scheduled for later in the afternoon.
Sheridan performed two operations on Durazo's right wrist in 2000, but this injury is not related to that problem, trainer Paul Lessard said.
Durazo was leading all hitters this spring in average, slugging percentage (1.070), on-base percentage (.553) and total bases (46). He was tied with teammate Luis Gonzalez in home runs (six) and tied with Gonzalez for second in RBIs with 16.
"I don't recall in all my years as a player or coach ever seeing a guy as locked in as he has been since the day he got down here to camp," manager Bob Brenly said. "I mean, the numbers he was putting up down here were ridiculous. There hasn't been any one way people have been able to pitch to him. He's hit fastballs, he's hit breaking balls, he's hit changeups. He's hit everything they've thrown up there."
With Greg Colbrunn recovering from arthroscopic elbow surgery, the Diamondbacks find themselves with a shortage of first basemen to back up Mark Grace.
Backup catcher Rod Barajas played many games at first last season at Triple-A Tucson and is the top candidate for the job. Brenly said Craig Counsell also can play first, as can Chris Donnels. Brenly suggested that perhaps Jay Bell could as well.
Grace said he had expected his playing time to drop because Durazo was hitting so well.
"Deservedly so," Grace said. "He was doing so well. You hate to see anything like that."
Durazo's power will be sorely missed in a lineup that already was missing third baseman Matt Williams, out at least until July with a broken ankle.
"We've talked all spring about our versatility," Brenly said. "We thought it was going to be to cover just one position. Now it looks like we may have to cover a couple."