Eli White fractures wrist in collision

The Texas Rangers have announce that they have placed outstanding center fielder Eli White on the Injured Reserve list following a serious collision with left fielder Charlie Culberson during Sunday’s 8-6 win over the Chicago White Sox.

Culberson lost the ball in the sun and as White laid out for it, the two had a horrific collision. White was able to exit the game under his own power, but subsequent x-rays showed that his wrist was fractured.

Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News has reported that White will not be able to throw a ball for six weeks and is not expected to return to full-time duties until September at the earliest.

This is a heavy blow for the Rangers, with White making his mark defensively as well as with the bat. Just two weeks ago, White made headlines with one of the best catches you are likely to see in a very long time when he went up and robbed Ji-man Choi of a home run during the Rangers’ 9-5 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays.

With White hitting .200 with three home runs and ten RBIs, the Rangers have recalled their 23-year old prospect, Leody Taveras from Triple-A Round Rock. Taveras has previously struggled to make the transition to the majors, but has been a stellar player this season, hitting .377 and going 9 for 21 in the last week.

Texas have several options available to them, perhaps moving Adolis Garcia to right field and shfting Kole Calhoun from right to left, freeing up Culberson to take center field duties. Or of course the simplest course of action would be to simply insert Taveras into center, leaving the rest of the lineup as it stands.