The hits just keep on coming for the Texas Rangers in the form of the pesky injury bug.
Leadoff hitter Shin-Soo Choo, who's been nothing short of spectacular in the role so far this season, led off Monday night's series-opening win in Oakland with a solo home run. Good thing, right? Well, his night got much worse after that as he exited the game in the seventh inning with an ankle injury after he appeared to step awkwardly on the first base bag while trying to beat out an infield single.
The Rangers' medical staff taped Choo's ankle during a lengthy replay process as he was initially ruled safe but then called out via replay. He attempted to go back out in the field for the bottom of the seventh, made it about 15 steps out of the dugout and then turned around and came back before entering the clubhouse.
It's highly unlikely Choo will play in Tuesday night's game, and he's likely to miss Wednesday's series finale, as well, before Thursday's off-day. He'll likely then be evaluated again and a decision will be made moving forward as the club heads to Seattle on Friday.
The vibe in the locker room and in several media reports late Monday night was that the club wasn't overly concerned with Choo's ankle, but also wasn't taking the injury lightly. X-rays on the ankle were negative, but he will undergo an MRI at some point Tuesday.
So far this season in Choo's 20 games as a Ranger, he's hit .314 with a .432 on-base percentage at the top of the Rangers' lineup. He has five doubles, a triple and two homers after Monday night's leadoff shot.
