Adam Jones is out of the Orioles starting lineup for a third straight game on Monday night. The O’s center fielder told reporters prior to the game, including The Baltimore Sun’s Eduardo Encina, that it was his choice not to be in the lineup.
There had been some more optimism about his condition on Sunday, when manager Buck Showalter suggested that, if the Orioles had been scheduled to play a night game instead of an afternoon game, Jones might have played. Yet with more than another full 24 hours to rest the hamstring issue that’s been ailing him, Jones is still out.
Although it’s bad in the short term for the O’s fortunes for Jones to be out, it’s good that he is recognizing that pushing through an injury to potentially hurt himself worse is not something he should be doing, even with the O’s in the playoff hunt. Better to miss Jones for another couple of games than to have him play, hurt himself, and miss the rest of the season.
Jones also told Encina that in not playing he is being “honest with his body” - and that trying to play through that kind of minor injury would be “selfish” of him to do. He still considers his status day-to-day.
So, get well soon to Jones, because in the meantime, Nolan Reimold remains in center field, and as for the starting lineup, Jonathan Schoop, with his .313 OBP overall and .263 OBP since the All-Star break, is getting his first ever start at leadoff in the lineup.
That’s not good news headed into the first game of an important three game series against the Blue Jays, but the Orioles will have to roll with it. Winning teams find ways to win, even when circumstances aren’t ideal. Maybe the Orioles can somehow do so tonight.
The lineup:
- Jonathan Schoop - 2B
- Hyun Soo Kim - LF
- Manny Machado - 3B
- Chris Davis - 1B
- Mark Trumbo - RF
- Matt Wieters - C
- Pedro Alvarez - DH
- J.J. Hardy - SS
- Nolan Reimold - CF
And that’s with Wade Miley on the mound. Why not just put Kim leadoff and move Schoop down between Wieters and Alvarez? Why not switch Wieters and Alvarez? I don’t know. Buck surely has his reasons. Let’s hope they pay off tonight.