By: Stephen Patterson
The Detroit Tigers are going to be missing Brandon Inge for at least 4-6 weeks after the third baseman suffered a broken bone in his left hand Monday night against the Rangers. The injury occurred when Inge was struck by a pitch from Scott Feldman in the third inning. This is going to do some major damage to Detroit's odds of winning their division.
Although Inge originally stayed in the game after the injury, he was taken out in the next inning. His x-rays revealed a non-displaced fracture of the fifth metacarpal. The injury comes at a bad time, as the team needs to make a move to pull away in the division race over the Chicago White Sox and Minnesota Twins. That move, however, might not be coming with Inge out of action for the foreseeable future.While he may not be having a great offensive season, Inge has been a constant defensive presence for the Tigers in recent years. The team doesn't have a solid back-up that plays third primarily, leaving them with a couple of options. They could rotate between Ryan Rayburn, Don Kelly, and Ramon Santiago to help fill the void. Another option Detroit could explore is making a move before the deadline to acquire a solid player to step in until Inge can return.
