A’s Elvis Andrus to miss season with fractured left fibula; Jed Lowrie to IL with sprained hand
OAKLAND — Oakland A’s shortstop Elvis Andrus will miss the remainder of the season with a fractured left fibula sustained while scoring the game-winning run in Saturday’s walk-off win against the Houston Astros.
Andrus will return to his home in Dallas, Tex. to see see Dr. Keith Meister and miss the remainder of the season. His visit should determine next steps.
“I don’t know that I’ve managed a player that’s tougher than Elvis is,” manager Bob Melvin said. “His pain tolerance is off the charts. But it creates a void. It gives us a big hole and we’re going to have to play around it.”
Josh Harrison, who plays all around the infield and outfield, will replace Andrus at shortstop for the remaining six games left in the regular season.
Andrus’s fibula fractured taking a first step off third base with his left leg. The play occurred on Starling Marte’s double into the gap in the ninth inning, Andrus scored the game-winning run from first base in the A’s 2-1 victory against the Houston Astros. But a dark cloud formed over the celebration when it was clear Andrus was injured.
Andrus, 32, played 146 games this season and missed a game against the Los Angeles Angels earlier this month after fouling a pitch off his left leg near the fibula in a game against the Kansas City Royals earlier that week. He fouled another pitch off that same spot earlier in Saturday’s game, A’s athletic trainer Nick Paparesta said. That extra sprint home could have been the last straw.
“Could be a multitude of a little micro-traumas that caused this thing,” Paparesta said. “Doing everything he can to get to home there might’ve caused the fracture.”
With no known damage to ligaments or tendons in his left leg area, according to Paparesta, the A’s expect Andrus to be ready for spring training in 2022. Andrus came to the A’s in the offseason in a trade with the Texas Rangers that sent catcher Jonah Heim and Khris Davis to Texas in exchange for the shortstop and a significant amount of cash.
Andrus is owed $6.75 million for the 2022 season. At least 550 plate appearances in the 2022 season or a combined 1,100 plate appearances in 2021-22 combined would guarantee Andrus a $15 million option for the 2023 season.
A’s designated hitter and second baseman Jed Lowrie was also placed on the 10-day injured list with a sprained right hand and will miss the rest of the regular season. Lowrie, 37, had been dealing with pain in his hand for weeks to a point where Lowrie could not bat right handed.
But the switch-hitter slotted in at designated hitter taking left-handed at-bats and aggravated his hand injury in an at-bat against the Seattle Mariners. He was sore the next day and unable to grip a bat. Lowrie will see orthopedic surgeon Dr. Thomas Mehlhoff in Houston next week.
“It was enough for Jed at this point in time,” Paparesta said. “The fact he was having trouble hitting left-handed, we thought it wasn’t worth him going out there and playing that way.”
After missing the 2020 season and most of the 2019 season with the New York Mets nursing a knee injury that required surgery, Lowrie played 139 games this with the A’s. He batted .245, a .318 OBP and 69 RBI.
Lowrie came to the A’s on a minor league deal in the 2021 offseason with questions surrounding his surgically repaired knee. Lowrie’s future with Oakland is uncertain.