CLEVELAND — Third baseman Jose Ramirez, whose hitting tear has aligned with the Cleveland Indians’ surge in the standings, needs surgery on his broken right hand and will be sidelined indefinitely as the team tries to catch Minnesota in the AL Central or capture an AL wild-card berth.
Ramirez was placed on the injured list Sunday with a fractured hamate bone, which typically takes more than a month to heal. He was removed from Saturday’s game in the first inning after swinging at a pitch. Manager Terry Francona said Ramirez, 26, has been dealing with soreness in his right wrist for some time.
Francona said Ramirez flew to New York and will undergo surgery Monday. The team will have a better sense of when Ramirez returns after the procedure.
Losing Ramirez for any length of time would be tough, but not having him during the home stretch is especially challenging for the Indians, who have been dealing with injuries all season.
“There’s two ways to look at it: You can feel sorry for yourself, which probably doesn’t end well,” Francona said, “or you can choose to fight back and feel like this is our time to shine. And I would choose No. 2. I’m aware that it got more difficult. We lost a great player.”
CUBS: First baseman Anthony Rizzo was sidelined because of tightness in his back.
Rizzo left Saturday’s 7-2 loss to Washington in the fifth inning. He has a history of back issues but Manager Joe Maddon said the tightness is in a different spot this time.
The Cubs are off Monday before beginning a three-game series Tuesday night at the New York Mets.
Chicago also placed reliever Derek Holland on the 10-day injured list and recalled infielder David Bote from Triple-A Iowa.
BREWERS: Right-hander Jeremy Jeffress was placed on the 10-day IL with a strained left hip and right-hander Ray Black was recalled from Triple-A San Antonio.
Jeffress said his hip started acting up last week in Washington and he’s hopeful of a minimum 10-day absence.
BLUE JAYS: Pitcher Clay Buchholz was activated from the 60-day injured list prior to the game at Seattle and lasted six innings in his first start since May 5, allowing two runs and three hits, striking out three.
Buchholz started the season on the IL with a right elbow strain, then suffered a Grade 2 shoulder strain in May, but looked strong in 65 pitches Sunday.
WHITE SOX: Jose Abreu said he called his mother, who follows his stats, about reaching 100 RBI again Sunday.
“I got off the phone with my mother, telling her thank you,” Abreu said through a translator. “I am who I am because of you and this is for you.”
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