|
|
The Washington Sea Dogs lost team leader and Iron Man Cal Ripken for anywhere from 4-6 months with anterior cruciate ligament inflammation in today's 11-7 loss to Denver, ending Ripken's consecutive game streak at 2521 games.
The injury occured in the 8th inning. Ripken dove for a ground ball, and after he stopped it, he didn't get up. He was then carted off the field on a stretcher, and brought to the hospital for X-rays.
The clubhouse was very quiet after the loss, as players were distraught over their co-captain's injury.
Co-captain Chuck Knoblauch was stunned. "Ripken's a dear friend of mine," said Knoblauch, "and I'm hurting for him right now. The initial prognosis is the rest of the year. We know we're going to miss Cal. None of us can really believe this happened."
Other members of the team were equally stunned.
"Man, I can't believe this happened," said centerfielder Marquis Grissom. "All my life I've been watching this guy play ball, and now that I get a chance to play with him, he's gone for the year."
First baseman Jose Offerman was distraught as well. "He's the guy who we all want to be, the guy who can go out there every day and be Cal Ripken, Jr. What do we do now?"
Manager Aaron Weiner, who was too upset to comment on Cal, closed the clubhouse after a short period of questioning to hold a team meeting. Sources inside the team say that the meeting was very emotional, and that Weiner stressed that they couldn't give up just because Cal Ripken is gone.
Ripken had played every game at shortstop this year, hitting .356, tied for second on the team, and committed only two errors at shortstop in 44 games this season.
It is possible that Ripken could be activated if the Sea Dogs manage to make the playoffs without him. However, Ripken's bat was one of the major catalysts for the Sea Dogs this year, and it is impossible to know how this will effect the lineup.
Manager Aaron Weiner said that he hoped that Jose Offerman could make the move back to shortstop. "Jose hasn't played at short in over two years now," said Weiner. "But he's the best thing we have going."
The Sea Dogs reclaimed 20-year old Hal Black from the waiver wire, who will presumably be the shortstop should Offerman be unable to play his original shortstop. Black is a better defender than Offerman, but fits the mold of a weak-hitting shortstop. If Offerman, the everyday first baseman, moves to shortstop, Jeff Conine will come in from left field to reclaim his original position.
Notes and Quotes:
Manager Weiner, before today's game, had been a little worried about the pitching staff. "The new bullpen help is going to make us better," Weiner said, "but I'm a little concerned about the rotation. We're thinking of skipping Stottlemyre's spot in the rotation; he's had a little shoulder trouble."
GM Aaron Weiner is looking for a contact-hitting outfielder to replace the loss of Ripken. "Cal wasn't hitting for power," said Weiner. "He did have eleven doubles, but he he's hit only two homers this year, so we feel like we might be able to replace his bat. There's no way we can replace his leadership, however."
Weiner also said, however, that he would not overpay for another bat. "We're not quite desperate yet," said Weiner, "though it may look that way. We're still in first place in our division, and when we get Warren (Newson, their DH) back in a month, we'll be in much better shape. We might struggle to score some runs this month, however."
Weiner also stressed that while Ripken had gone down, the pitching had gotten better. "Look at the players we got yesterday," said Weiner. "I mean, Ripken's loss doesn't look nearly as bad with all the bullpen help we've picked up." Weiner also said that they're also after another pitcher to fill the 40th spot on their roster.
Written by Aaron Weiner