The Los Angeles Angels probably don’t need more bad news.
However, injuries rarely have any respect for anything: they can arrive at the most untimely moments.
Angels infielder David Fletcher is the latest member of the team to get hurt.
He suffered a right hand contusion last week that hasn’t fully healed.
It’s so bad that it compromises his ability to hit.
“David Fletcher has bunted all three times he’s come to the plate with his sore hand. He’s 1-for-3. He bunted with two strikes this time. The #Angels are down 1-0 in the 3rd after an Oscar Gonzalez HR against Patrick Sandoval in the 2nd,” Jeff Fletcher of the SoCal News Group tweeted.
David Fletcher has bunted all three times he's come to the plate with his sore hand. He's 1-for-3. He bunted with two strikes this time.
The #Angels are down 1-0 in the 3rd after an Oscar Gonzalez HR against Patrick Sandoval in the 2nd.
— Jeff Fletcher (@JeffFletcherOCR) September 14, 2022
It’s an embarrassing decision by the Angels to send a player who is clearly not healthy to the plate to bunt.
Not only does it compromise Fletcher’s health, but it clearly affects the Angels’ chances of winning because the Cleveland Guardians defense already expects him to bunt.
The Angels Need To Place Fletcher On The IL
The Angels just needed to place Fletcher on the injured list and call up a minor leaguer to take his spot, but they couldn’t even do that right.
It’s yet another stain for a battered franchise.
Fans certainly don’t deserve this kind of treatment. and neither does Fletcher.
The infielder is slashing .265/.303/.357 with a .660 OPS in 52 games and 185 trips to the plate.
For him, it’s probably time to get healthy and think about 2023.
It’s baffling that an MLB organization is sending an injured player to the field when preserving his health is so easy.
It’s a bad look not just for the Angels, but for MLB as a whole.
It shouldn’t happen again.
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