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Tribe pitcher White to miss 2-3 months
Photo
ASSOCIATED PRESS
This is a 2011 photo of pitcher Alex White of the Cleveland Indians baseball team. This image reflects the Cleveland Indians active roster as of Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2011 when this image was taken.
Associated Press
CLEVELAND
Indians rookie Alex White didn’t want to use the word — and then he did.
“Heartbreaking,” he said.
Considered one of the top pitching prospects in Cleveland’s organization, White will be sidelined at least two months with a sprained ligament in his right middle finger, a major setback for the 2009 first-round draft pick.
The 22-year-old White injured his finger while throwing a slider in the third inning of Friday night’s game against Cincinnati. On Saturday, he underwent an MRI and was examined by hand specialist Dr. Thomas Graham before being placed on the disabled list.
Head trainer Lonnie Soloff said White, the No. 15 pick two years ago, isn’t allowed to pick up a baseball for three to four weeks. Soloff said surgery is not currently an option and that he’s “cautiously optimistic” White will pitch again this season.
White, who went 1-0 with a 3.60 ERA in three starts, is confident he’ll be back on the mound for Cleveland in 2011. He can’t imagine the alternative.
“This is just another test,” he said. “I have no doubt at all I’ll be back. I just want to help this team win. I want to be a part of this this year, and that’s the frustrating part. We have such a good team and I want to be part of all the fun.”
White will wear a splint for the next few weeks to protect the ligament, which holds down a tendon in the finger.
He stayed in the game after getting hurt, but Soloff said White didn’t cause any further damage. White told the Indians he had experienced some past soreness in the finger, and Soloff said it was only a matter of time before he injured the ligament.