Associated Press
DETROIT ó Josh Hamilton sat in front of his locker and seemed a little more at ease, saying he and third-base coach Dave Anderson have cleared up any misunderstandings.
Now, the Texas Rangers have to try to win without their slugger. Their first attempt fell short.
Brandon Inge hit a solo home run in the bottom of the ninth inning and the Detroit Tigers beat the Rangers 3-2 on Wednesday. It was Texas’ first game without Hamilton, who broke his right arm Tuesday while being thrown out at the plate.
Hamilton tagged up on a foul popup, a risky play he called ěstupidî afterward. He said running was a bad decision, but that Anderson told him to do it.
The two met before Wednesdayís game.
ěI just appreciate Dave having confidence in my ability to think I could make that play. We talked behind closed doors and just kind of talked about everything,î Hamilton said. ěI could have took a different route, as far as trying to cool down a little bit before I spoke.î
Hamilton broke his upper right arm. The Rangers put him on the 15-day disabled list, but the reigning AL MVP is expected to miss six to eight weeks. He isnít expected to swing a bat for a month. Texas recalled infielder Chris Davis from Triple-A Round Rock.
Anderson said before the game the teamís style isnít going to change.
ěItís an aggressive play that we tried to do and it didnít work. That took us a long way last year ó a lot of those plays that we did. Thatís part of our game,î Anderson said. ěIf he doesnít get hurt, then weíre not even talking about this right now. Heís out at home plate, we go back out. … My job at third base is two things: Make sure they get the signs, and try to score as many runs as we can possibly score.î
A few hours later, Hamilton clarified his initial comments.
ěI wasnít calling him stupid or anything like that. It was just the play itself and coming out injured,î Hamilton said. ěI could have made the play and then not gotten hurt, and it would have been a great play, but it didnít work out that way.î