The defending World Series champion Kansas City Royals took a hit on Thursday when the team announced that third baseman Mike Moustakas was placed in the disabled list with a torn Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL).
.@Mooose_8 has been placed on the 15-day D.L. with a right ACL tear; @Brett_Eibner has been recalled from @OMAStormChasers #Royals
— #VoteRoyals (@Royals) May 26, 2016
Moustakas received the injury in a collision with left fielder Alex Gordon while trying to make a play on a foul pop-up on Sunday against the Chicago White Sox. A video of the collision can be seen with the tweet below.
Royals avoid major damage on scary collision https://t.co/hXl5xQxrAo #ForeverRoyal pic.twitter.com/z7tQvuYEoI
— KC Royals (@KCRoyalsForever) May 23, 2016
Royals lose big bat in Moustakas
The 27-year-old is coming off a career year in 2015, in which he hit .284 with twenty-two home runs and eighty-two RBI, while helping the Royals defeat the New York Mets in the World Series. In twenty-seven games this season, he was hitting .240 with seven homers and thirteen RBI. The Royals also lost Gordon for an extended period on that same play. The outfielder broke a bone in his wrist and could miss 3-4 weeks, according to The Kansas City Star.
The team also announced in a statement that outfielder Brett Eibner was recalled from Triple-A to replace Moustakas on the roster. Eibner, a former Arkansas Razorback, was hitting .309 with ten homers for the Omaha Storm Chasers.
Infielder Cheslor Cuthbert will most likely fill Moustakas’s role at the hot corner for the remainder of the season. The 22-year-old has appeared in fifteen games this season and is hitting .237.
Kansas City currently sits two games back of the first place Chicago White Sox, and 1.5 games behind the Cleveland Indians. These injuries could hamper the defending champs’ efforts to keep pace.
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