The Colorado Rockies placed outfielder Carlos Gonzalez on the disabled list Wednesday with a sprained finger, according to the team's official Twitter page. Colorado has called up pitcher Jeff Francis from Triple-A Colorado Springs to take Gonzalez's roster spot.
Carlos Gonzalez injury: Rockies OF placed on DL with sprained finger
Gonzalez attempted a return to the Rockies’ lineup on Sunday, but re-aggravated the injury.
Scott Cunningham
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Gonzalez re-aggravated his finger injury on July 31 and only received one pinch-hit appearance before returning to the starting lineup on Sunday. He went 0-4 in his return with his finger reportedly remaining bothersome. He once again aggravated the injury in his final at-bat that game.
Rockies team trainer Keith Dugger had previously said he did not think a DL stint would aid in Gonzalez’s recovery. However, after multiple set-backs and the fact that he would likely miss several more games anyway, the decision was made to bring up a fresh player and give Gonzalez some rest.
Gonzalez is certainly a player who will be under heavy consideration for the National League MVP award at the end of the season. Over 103 games in 2013, he leads the league with a .958 OPS while also hitting 26 home runs and stealing 21 bases. His candidacy for the award is already likely hurt by the Rockies being 10 games under .500. If this lingering sprain continues to bother him, he may see his stats slip as well.
Francis has spent parts of nine seasons in the majors, working almost exclusively as a starter. He holds a 4.93 ERA over 217 appearances with the Rockies and Royals. In 12 major league games (11 starts) this season, Francis has compiled a 6.63 ERA and 1.564 WHIP.
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