SAN DIEGO (AP) -Padres second baseman Tadahito Iguchi will miss four to six weeks with a separated shoulder after he tumbled while running the bases against the New York Mets on Thursday night.
``We've been hit hard, especially on the pitching side,'' Padres manager Bud Black said Friday. ``It's not good. He's a steady, dependable, intelligent player. He really knows how to play. He was very much a stabilizing force on the infield.''
Iguchi suffered the injury on a bizarre play in the seventh inning of a 2-1 victory over the Mets.
Iguchi hit a one-out single and moved to second on a walk to Brian Giles. With two outs, Kevin Kouzmanoff hit a hard grounder between third base and shortstop. Iguchi fell awkwardly to the ground and landed on his right shoulder while trying to avoid the ball as he ran to third.
Hit by the grounder, Iguchi was ruled out and Kouzmanoff got credit for a single. Iguchi was replaced by Edgar Gonzalez in between innings.
Iguchi is the fifth San Diego regular, including three starting pitchers, to be placed on the 15-day disabled list since May 20.
``We can't bury our heads in the sand about this,'' Black said. ``We'll see how it plays out. You got to play the game, you've got to play the schedule.''
Reigning Cy Young Award winner Jake Peavy (strained right elbow) was put on the DL on May 20, retroactive to May 15. Starting pitcher Chris Young (broken nose) and catcher Josh Bard (sprained left ankle) were injured in the same inning on May 21 against St. Louis and placed on the DL the next day. Left-hander Shawn Estes (fractured left thumb) went on the list May 31, retroactive to May 29.
Peavy is scheduled to throw a three-inning simulated game on Saturday. If all goes well, the Padres likely will activate him next week.
Iguchi is hitting .259 with two homers and 20 RBIs in 59 games. He is one of two second basemen in the majors - Tampa Bay's Akinori Iwamura is the other - who has not committed an error this season. Iguchi's last error came on June 12, 2007, with the Chicago White Sox, a span of 124 games and 607 chances.
Gonzalez, the older brother of Padres first baseman Adrian Gonzalez, was penciled in at second base for Friday night's game against the Mets. Gonzalez also was hitting second - Iguchi's spot - in the batting order.
Black said the Padres will use both Gonzalez at second as well as Craig Stansberry, who was recalled from Triple-A Portland on Friday.
The Padres also reinstated right-hander Clay Hensley from the 15-day DL and optioned him to Portland. Hensley was originally placed on the DL on March 26 with a right shoulder strain. He had appeared in four rehab starts in the minors.Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
