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Key Padres Infielder Will Undergo Surgery For A Torn ACL
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- Key Padres Infielder Will Undergo Surgery For A Torn ACL
(IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect)
The San Diego Padres knew they were staring down the barrel of some potentially bad news when i nfielder Luis Rengifo twisted to make a throw and his knee buckled on Sunday, and yesterday they learned that Rengifo sustained a full ACL tear in his right knee and will have to undergo season-ending surgery.
It was yet another major blow for the Padres, as they've picked up multiple players who have given them an offensive spark, only to suffer a tough injury that takes them out of the lineup.
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Rengifo was initially said to have a knee sprain by manager Craig Stammen , but that felt like wishful thinking given that Rengifo had to be carted off after going down. No date has been set for the surgery yet, but the Padres will miss the numbers Rengifo provided when they signed him after the Milwaukee Brewers released the infielder back in June.
Rengifo batted 291 with a .784 OPS, according to AJ Cassavell of MLB.com , and he delivered some crucial hits. Those included a key go-ahead homer against the Marlins in late July, along with a grand slam against Milwaukee on Aug. 11.
"He gave us a little bit of the spark that we were looking for," said Stammen. "He's a player that had done that in the past. You don't know if that past is still in him or not. He showed that he still had it in him, proved that he was a very valuable part of our team. We're going to definitely miss him."
The Padres made another interesting roster move when Rengifo went down, as they also placed outfielder/first baseman Gavin Sheets on the IL due to his ongoing struggles with plantar fasciitis. That sets San Diego up to make some maneuvers at DH, according to Stammen.
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"The DH will be one of those roles that's a little bit different without Luis out there," Stammen said. "Left field will be a little bit different. Not having a guy that can move around the infield like he could -- will be a little bit different. But we brought up a couple guys that have helped us a lot during the season, too."
The reinforcements included outfielder Samad Taylor , who supplied some much-needed speed before his embarrassing moment trying to catch a fly ball from Jonny DeLuca of the Tampa Bay Rays on Sunday, only to have tbe ball slide out of his glve and over the wall onto the buffet table for a game-tying home run off Mason Miller .
Infield Sung-Mun Song is also back in the mix after being sent down to Triple-A El Paso, although Song disappointed once again by popping out while trying to deliver a sacrifice bunt last night against the Cincinnati Reds .
