KANSAS CITY: Jose Reyes heard a pop in his left ankle as he awkwardly slid into second base. After that, everything else was a blur to the Toronto Blue Jays yesterday.
The trainers lifted their star shortstop onto a cart, and the cart drove through the bullpen gate in right field. The sight was of Reyes, his ankle heavily bandaged, being pushed out of their clubhouse after an 8-4 win over the Kansas City Royals , on his way to have an MRI exam.
The sound of general manager Alex Anthopoulos on the phone with other GMs, already trying to make a deal for a replacement amid the sobering news that Reyes could be out up to three months.
“It’s on everybody’s mind,” Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said. “Doesn’t matter if he’s on our team or another team, in the baseball world - the baseball community - your heart goes out to whoever it might be. In this case, he’s one of the top guys in the game.”
Reyes had just driven in two runs with a base hit when he was attempting to steal second base in the sixth inning. He appeared to be indecisive about whether to go in sliding or standing, and made the late choice to hit the dirt, his trailing ankle twisting cruelly beneath him. Reyes slid over the bag, and then rolled around on the dirt, screaming in pain. Trainers for both teams ran out to help him while a green cart was driven in from the outfield.
“It didn’t look good, obviously,” Blue Jays starter JA Happ said.
Anthopoulos said the results of the MRI exam may not be known until today, and while the initial diagnosis was a sprained left ankle, the GM acknowledged Reyes is headed for the disabled list and that it could be months.
“You never want to see it, but at the same time, you’ve been through enough to know it’s going to happen over the course of the season,” Anthopoulos said.
Agencies
