Get Well Soon Josh Hamilton

"We need Josh. But if Josh is not there, we're not going to lie down. We've got some players and we're going to play." - Ron Washington


Some not-so-good news on the Texas Rangers homestead: Josh Hamilton has two fractured ribs. However, best hitter (.361/31/97) and the American League's top MVP candidate has not been ruled out for the season.

Hamilton hasn't played for his Texas Rangers since September 4, when he crashed into a wall with an already stiff back, making a pretty sweet catch against the Minnesota Twins.

An MRI on Tuesday found a couple small rib fractures that, oddly enough, previous tests had missed. General manager Jon Daniels had this to say regarding Hamilton's return to the game:

It is typically 48-72 hours before it’s known whether this treatment has the desired effect. Once the discomfort recedes to a point where Josh is comfortable, he can return to baseball activities.

So basically, there is still no timetable for his return. The Rangers should tread lightly however, as they're trying to clinch their first division title since 1999. Having an injured guy in the lineup not playing at 100% is dangerous territory... even though Josh Hamilton's 70% is damn near the equivalent to your average player's 100%.

Besides, they want him semi-healthy for the postseason, right? Right.

The Rangers dropped game one of their three-game series against the Los Angeles Angels Monday by a score of 7-4, bringing their magic number to six. They could eliminate the Halos by winning the next two, but not so fast Rangers fans: LA will be putting Ervin Santana and Dan Haren on the bump to try and stop the bleeding.

Meanwhile, since the Oakland Athletics beat the Chicago White Sox 3-0 last night, the Rangers now lead the A's by eight games with just 13 to play -- including a four-game road series in Oakland beginning Thursday night.

[MLB.com] | [Big League Stew]