2012 has not been kind to Indians designated hitter Travis Hafner. In May he hurt his knee; it wound up being a torn meniscus that kept him out of action for a little over a month from late May to early July.
Travis Hafner On Disabled List ... Again
Indians DH Travis Hafner hasn’t played a full season since 2007; now he’s injured again.
His batting average was down -- .236, far below his career average of .278 -- but the rest of his line doesn’t look too bad: .239/.355/.453 with 11 home runs and 32 RBI in 60 games, good for an OPS+ of 126. When he’s played, he’s been productive.
Now, he’s not going to be playing for at least 15 days:
— Tom Withers (@twithersAP) August 9, 2012
#Indians place DH Travis Hafner on 15-day DL with lower back inflammation. INF Jason Donald recalled.
The Indians can backdate this move to August 6, since Hafner last played on August 5; it's the only appearance he's made since July 31. He actually had a nice game that day against the Tigers: 3-for-5 with a home run and three RBI.
Hafner is in the final year of a four-year contract; the Indians hold a club option for $13 million for 2013, with a $2.75 million buyout. Hafner is 35 and it doesn’t seem likely the Tribe would pick up an expensive option like that given Hafner’s injury history.
If he’s played his final game for Cleveland, at least he went out with a salvo.
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