Aug 11, 2014; Baltimore, MD, USA; Baltimore Orioles third baseman Manny Machado (13) goes down with a knee injury after striking out in the third inning against the New York Yankees at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Joy R. Absalon-USA TODAY Sports
BALTIMORE — The Baltimore Orioles now can just hope the damage to third baseman Manny Machado’s right knee isn’t too bad.
Machado, who underwent surgery on his left knee after suffering a torn medial patellofemoral ligament in the final days of the 2013 season, had his right knee collapse under him as he hit a broken-bat grounder in the third inning of Monday’s 11-3 victory over the Yankees.
He stayed on the ground in the batter’s box in plenty of pain before head athletic trainer Richie Bancells and manager Buck Showalter helped him back to the dugout.
The team announced a little later that Machado suffered a sprained knee that would be re-evaluated Tuesday. Afterward, they appeared a bit more cautiously optimistic as the third baseman did walk into the locker room although with a limp.
“It’s been a lot more positive than the way it probably looked,” Showalter said. “He seemed in pretty good spirits considering. We’re hoping for good news tomorrow. There’s a chance we may have dodged a bullet. We’ll see.”
Machado missed the first month of this season while rehabilitating the other knee from the offseason surgery. He’s struggled at times but doubled and scored in Monday’s game and now has a .278 average with 12 homers and 32 RBIs.
“I have no idea (what it was); it just happened,” Machado said. “No explanation for it, just a freak accident. Life is full of things you can’t control. It doesn’t feel too bad, but we’ll see.”
The loss of Machado for a long stretch would be huge for the first-place Orioles, as he’s already arguably the top fielding third baseman in baseball despite being in just his second full season. He won a Gold Glove last year and can make dynamic plays at third with his glove and arm.
Baltimore already is without shortstop J.J. Hardy (sprained thumb). He’s been out the last two days and also won a Gold Glove. Catcher Matt Wieters, who’s won a Gold Glove twice, the last coming in 2012, has been out since early May and eventually had Tommy John surgery.
