Kansas City Royals third baseman Mike Moustakas' injury-plagued 2016 season hit another rough patch Monday after he suffered a knee injury.
Continue for updates.
Moustakas Listed as 'Day to Day'
Monday, May 23
Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com noted Moustakas only has a knee contusion and shouldn't be out long.
Moustakas has been among the Royals' key hitters this season when healthy with seven home runs following what was a breakout campaign in 2015.
After failing to deliver on his considerable promise in the first four years of his career, Moose was named to the All-Star team for the first time last season, hitting .284 with 22 home runs and 82 RBI for the eventual World Series champions.
Moustakas entered 2016 as an offensive centerpiece for KC, but staying off the injured list has proved to be a challenge.
The 27-year-old veteran landed on the disabled list in May with a fractured left thumb, and while he was able to return to the lineup, the ailments have continued to mount.
Moose has largely been a durable player throughout his career, as he entered 2016 having appeared in 136 or more games for four straight seasons. He played in 147 last year and tied his career high with 614 plate appearances in the process.
Pitching has arguably been the biggest key to the Royals' success in recent years, but their timely hitting had much to do with their World Series triumph in 2015.
The hitting has been far less consistent this season, and with Moustakas potentially set to miss even more time, it is difficult to envision Kansas City improving much in that regard moving forward.
Moustakas is arguably the Royals' primary source of power, and assuming Whit Merrifield steps in to replace him while he is on the shelf, manager Ned Yost will be missing an important dimension from his lineup.
Kansas City is strong enough from a pitching and defense perspective to win games without Moustakas, but his bat has been a big part of the timely hitting that lifted the Royals to a championship.
Provided other big-name hitters such as Lorenzo Cain, Eric Hosmer and Salvador Perez manage to step up, however, KC may have enough offense to get by.
Follow @MikeChiari on Twitter.
Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com
- Login to post comments