J.J. Hardy to Miss 6-8 Weeks With Hairline Fracture

Well, we got some good news earlier, and now we get the bad news. The O’s dodged one bullet today, when it was revealed that Zach Britton will likely avoid the DL, but they aren’t so lucky when it comes to J.J. Hardy.

Per Roch Kubatko, Hardy is headed to the DL, but will be on it for far longer than just 15 days:

Orioles shortstop J.J. Hardy sustained a hairline fracture in his left foot yesterday and is expected to miss six to eight weeks, a harsh blow for a team so reliant on its defense.

Hardy was scheduled to undergo a CT scan after X-rays yesterday raised serious concerns within the organization. The injury was labeled a “contusion,” but further testing was ordered.

Today’s findings came as no surprise.

While Hardy has been less than stellar with the bat so far this season (.244/.291/.410 with two homers, both of the “Pesky Pole” variety), his glove has been as steady as ever.

I’m wondering if Buck Showalter will move Manny Machado over to shortstop for the next six to eight weeks, or if he’ll keep Manny at third and rotate guys filling in for Hardy. While I don’t love the idea of moving Manny from the hot corner, putting him at short may give Buck some more options to keep bigger bats in the lineup. Chris Davis could slide over to third, with Mark Trumbo at first. Pedro Alvarez could also play some third, though I hear he makes Jimmy Paredes look like Brooks Robinson.

While Davis has been awesome at first, desperate times call for desperate measures. He’s been serviceable at third in the past, and Trumbo should be able to hold down first base. There’s no getting around the fact that the O’s defense is taking a hit here…so we’ll have to make up for it with some more runs on the board, which means getting the big bats in the lineup as often as possible.

We’ll miss you, J.J., that’s for sure. Hopefully this team can absorb the blow and welcome you back in two months still at or near the top of the standings.