With Jose Valverde struggling to throw strikes and the bases loaded, the Tigers looked to be in a lot of trouble in the ninth inning of last night's game against the Yankees. Already one run had been walked in and Derek Jeter was up to bat for New York. To say there was a great deal of concern is an understatement.
Luckily for Valverde and the Tigers, though, Jeter hit a grounder to the shortstop, who flipped the ball to Carlos Guillen. Guillen got the out at second and then made quite the turn to get Jeter out at first. The play was tremendous, as it saved the game for the Tigers, but there was concern over Guillen possibly being injured yet again.
Brett Gardner's slide into second was very dangerous, and it left Guillen struggling to get up and walk off the field without limping. Considering Guillen has had so many injury problems in the past, speculation quickly began over what he hurt this time. Well, here's the prognosis:
Detroit Tigers second baseman Carlos Guillen, who suffered a bruised left knee on Monday night’s final play, was "doing much" better after the game, Tigers head athletic trainer Kevin Rand said.
Rand said Guillen would be reevaluated today.
If Guillen escaped that nasty slide with only a bruised left knee, then that shouldn't be a big concern going forward. It could have been a lot worse than that, especially considering Guillen has had so many injury issues in the past, but a bruised left knee is far from the worst-case scenario for sure.