May 20 2009
Weeks has successful surgery
Rickie Weeks had successful surgery today to repair a tendon in his left wrist. Weeks had the same surgery performed on his other wrist a couple years back.
He will miss the rest of the 2009 campaign. Needless to say, this is a huge blow to the Brewers. Weeks was playing great baseball so far this year, and was finally starting to hit the ball like he’s supposed to.
Rickie had a .272/.340/.517 line in 37 games this year. He had 9 homeruns and 24 RBI, and was on pace to shatter both of those numbers.
GM Doug Melvin said the Brewers will try and fill Weeks’ void internally, meaning Craig Counsell, Casey McGehee, and recent callup Hernan Iribarren will all see time at 2b for the rest of the season. Brewers prospect Alcides Escobar will begin working out at 2b in an effort to expand his versatility in case of additional injuries at the Major League level.
The Brewers now have no leadoff hitter on their roster, something that is a major concern. Corey Hart got the startat leadoff for Tuesday’s series opener in Houston, but he is a pretty poor choice given his ability to drive in runs and inability to draw walks.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Brewers go out and either sign a free agent or test the trade market for a 2b. Ray Durham proved last year that he can still play, but he’d be even worse than Rickie defensively. Mark Grudzielanek is out there as well, and at age 38, he can still play a decent 2b.
As for the in house options, Iribarren is probably a role player at best, and Counsell is likely an injury waiting to happen if he gets everyday playing time. Both of them are left handed bats, something this lineup could use. McGehee is solid but may be playing out of position at second.
Former Brewers Mark Loretta and Ronnie Belliard are probably available in a trade, but Melvin believes in the players the team already has.
Time will tell how Rickie’s injury will affect this team, but one can’t help to think it’s going to be a major blow as the dog days of summer approach. Until then, hopefully the Brewers’ current 2b options perform well.
