OAKLAND A's third baseman Eric Chavez had an MRI on his right shoulder Tuesday and isn't expected to return to the lineup until the weekend at the earliest.
After jamming his shoulder while diving back to first base Friday, Chavez was relieved the MRI showed only tendinitis in his shoulder and no new structural damage. He said he expected some ups and downs after having his shoulder operated on for the second time over the offseason. His neck, which also was sore after Friday's jolt, was feeling much better Tuesday.
"They're going to try and calm (the shoulder) down," Chavez said. "Hopefully I'll come back Saturday or Sunday."
Surely the A's are preparing for the possibility of Chavez being out longer, given he's played a combined 113 games over the past two seasons. The A's also believe they have better depth to absorb his absence after signing Nomar Garciaparra in the offseason, but Garciaparra comes with his own injury history.
He made his second straight start at third base Tuesday night but left after just one inning with tightness in his right calf. Bobby Crosby replaced him, and the severity of Garciaparra's injury was unknown.
When healthy, Garciaparra is an excellent fill-in for Chavez. But A's manager Bob Geren talked before the game about how he'd like to avoid starting him in day games after night games, which will be the case with this afternoon's series finale against Boston.
The A's are off Thursday before starting a six-game road trip Friday in Toronto.
Buck gets in
Travis Buck started in right field Tuesday against Red Sox right-hander Daisuke Matsuzaka, just his fourth start in eight games. He entered the night 1-for-11 this season. Geren went with Rajai Davis over Buck on Sunday and Monday against left-handed pitchers, starting Davis in center field and moving Ryan Sweeney to right. "I just stick with the same stuff, same mentality, as if I'm going to play every day," Buck said before the game. He lined an RBI single to right during the A's five-run first inning against Matsuzaka.
Short hops
Reliever Joey Devine will undergo a bone scan and CT scan on his right elbow today, as was planned last week. "... Geren won't alter his rotation with Thursday's off day, so Josh Outman starts Friday against the Blue Jays, followed by Trevor Cahill and Dallas Braden. "... Today is Jackie Robinson Day in Major League Baseball, so each A's player will wear No. 42. "... The A's raised $130,000 last weekend for the family trust funds of the four Oakland police officers killed March 21. "... Capt. Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger, the Danville resident who piloted the U.S. Airways plane to safety on the Hudson River, threw out the first pitch.
Joe Stiglich
