 |
| Machado is a big loss for Baltimore. Photo Credit: Patrick Semansky/AP |
The Orioles brilliant second half run to the top of the AL East suffered a setback with the news of their very bright and talented third baseman Manny Machado.
By: Michael Hanley
Tim Brown of Yahoo Sports tweeted out:
Source: Manny Machado expected to have surgery on knee within a week. Likely lost for the season. Big hit for O's.
Machado had been on the disabled list since August 12th with what was called a sprain knee at the time. It is unclear if his knee got worse since he was put on the shelf or if the Orioles as an organization decided to be conservative as to how they worded the injury to the media. Either way this is a big loss for the Orioles as they head toward the postseason.
The 22 year old was having a solid year for Baltimore as he was hitting .278 with 12 home runs and 32 RBIs in 82 games he played in this season. He gave what was an already impressive lineup another productive bat that could flash some power with a home run once in a while and a dependable player in key RBI situations. His defense also was high quality as he has great range to cover a lot of ground and also a very strong throwing arm that will be dearly missed.
The Orioles are now faced with having to somehow patch together the third base spot in terms of offense and see if they can get some type of production from some of the other options they have at that position. They have three players who are capable of playing third base in Chris Davis, Ryan Flaherty and Cord Phelps. All three are serviceable third baseman but anyway the team chooses to go on this decision of who fills Machado’s position, it will be a significant downgrade in terms of production at the plate and infield defense.
Though this loss potentially of Machado is a tough loss for this team, they have been able to play and win without him at different times this season. Their record without Machado in the lineup is a respectable 26-18, certainly more than enough to continue to keep their eight game lead they have in the AL East Division race.
Follow me on Twitter: @Magic20099
