NewsRoyals place Pena on disabled list
Infielder shows grit vs. Twins despite broken hand bone
By Thor Nystrom / Special to MLB.com
05/03/09 2:48 PM ET
MINNEAPOLIS -- The Royals placed infielder Tony Pena on the 15-day disabled list Sunday with a fractured hamate bone in his left hand.The injury occurred in a 10th-inning at-bat of Saturday's 10-7 victory over the Twins. Pena said he "felt tingling" in the hand after he fouled off a 91-mph fastball from Twins reliever Matt Guerrier. Pena flew out to left fielder Denard Span on the next pitch.
Pena's day was not over, however. Royals manager Trey Hillman only had two players left on his bench -- Mark Teahen and Mike Jacobs.
"If I didn't think that Tony could have finished, then I probably would have inserted Teahen out there in the middle [infield] rather than replace him for Mitch [Maier] as the pinch-hitter," Hillman said.
Maier was due up fourth in the 11th inning. Teahen, as the pinch-hitter, drew a walk from Twins reliever Craig Breslow to load the bases. The Royals scored three runs in the frame to ensure the extra-innings victory.
"At the point in time that I pinch-hit Mitch ... I knew [Pena] wasn't going to be able to grip the bat and I knew he couldn't fully close his glove," Hillman said. "I asked him if he thought he could get through it, and he said, 'Yeah, I'll figure out a way.' I made a joke, I said, 'Well, really, the only other two shortstops we have available are [third-base coach Dave Owen] and myself. I said, 'I'd rather have you out there with a broken hand than me or Dave.' He looked at me and started laughing and said, 'I'll figure out a way to do it so you won't have to put you or Dave out there.'"
Pena played an integral role in the game's wild ending after breaking the hamate bone. In the bottom of the 10th, Pena fielded a Nick Punto grounder and threw out the speedy Twins shortstop. Pena batted -- one-handed -- in the top of the 11th inning. The right-hand-only swing produced a groundout to second base.
"I was just trying defensively to get in front of everything and keep every movement under control," Pena said. "When I got to the plate, I tried to take a swing to see how bad it felt. It didn't feel good at all. I didn't want to strike out, so I just tried to go with one hand to hopefully put the ball in play, and that happened."
Pena helped convert the game-ending double play in the 11th inning off the bat of Justin Morneau. Second baseman Alberto Callaspo fielded the ground ball and flipped it to Pena, who fired to first baseman Billy Butler.
Hillman praised Pena's grit prior to Sunday's game.
"Very tough. Very, very tough," Hillman said. "Especially having another at-bat and turning that last double play."
Pena said he would see a hand specialist Monday in Kansas City.
The Royals selected the contract of infielder Luis Hernandez from Triple-A Omaha to fill the roster spot.
"He's got the most time of the guys we have available logged at short at this point in time at this level," Hillman said. "He's hitting pretty good. My understanding is he's been playing well. He gives us another switch-hitter, which never hurts. He has a little bit of experience."
Hernandez spent the last two seasons in the Baltimore organization. He played 66 games in the big leagues with the Orioles from 2007-08.
Hernandez was a non-roster invitee at Spring Training. He was batting .292 (21-for-72) with 13 RBIs in 20 games for Omaha.
Thor Nystrom is a contributor to MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
