CHICAGO — Rangers manager Ron Washington delivered a brief message to Josh Hamilton before the AL MVP returned to Texas on Tuesday to be re-evaluated by team physician Keith Meister.
“Have fun, stay healthy. Hope everything works out,” Washington said he told his slugger. “See you when you get back.”
Washington and Texas could have their brightest star back in the lineup soon. Hamilton took early batting practice before the Rangers finished a two- game series at Chicago and the outfielder will play his first rehab game with Double-A Frisco today if he gets cleared by Meister.
“Making sure Dr. Meister thinks what he sees is good enough for him to start playing, and if that’s the case, he’ll start (today),” Washington said Tuesday. “If not, he’ll let us know.”
It will be Hamilton’s first game action since he broke a bone in his upper right arm April 12 on a headfirst slide into home at Detroit.
Fellow injured outfielder Nelson Cruz (quadriceps) began a rehab assignment with Frisco on Monday night. Cruz went 1-for-3 with an RBI double in the RoughRiders’ 3-2 win over Midland.
Matsuzaka placed on DL
BOSTON — Red Sox right-hander Daisuke Matsuzaka is going on the DL to rest his right elbow, which has been bothering him, and manager Terry Francona said there is no timetable on the pitcher’s return.
The Red Sox, who put right-hander John Lackey on the DL on Monday, are expected to recall right-hander Michael Bowden from Triple-A Pawtucket.
Footnotes.
The Yankees placed setup reliever Rafael Soriano (elbow) on the DL and called up outfielder Chris Dickerson from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes- Barre.
• Athletics left-hander Dallas Braden underwent surgery to repair a torn capsule in his pitching shoulder, ending his season after just three starts and making his return murkier than ever.
• The White Sox put third baseman Mark Teahen (oblique) on the 15-day DL and promoted infielder Dallas McPherson from Triple-A Charlotte.
• The Cubs optioned outfielder Tyler Colvin to Triple-A Iowa and called up outfielder Tony Campana. They also swapped relievers, replacing Marcos Mateo with Scott Maine.
• The San Francisco Giants agreed to produce a YouTube spot for the “It Gets Better” campaign, an anti-suicide campaign geared toward gay youth.
The Associated Press
