Joining a club I'm sure he would much rather not be a part of, minor league infielder Michael Hollimon found himself among the Detroit Tigers who are either struggling through shoulder problems or recuperating from shoulder surgery after trying to make a diving play on a ball in yesterday's game vs. the Reds.
Hollimon dislocated his left shoulder, and will undergo a MRI exam today to determine the extent of the damage and how much time he'll miss. Hollimon had become a favorite of several Tigers bloggers, who hoped he might make this year's big league club as a utility infielder. Not being able to trade Brandon Inge created a glut of infielders on the roster, however, and Hollimon was likely to lose out on a numbers game.
Shoulder injuries aren't all the same, of course, but as a point of reference, maybe it's worth pointing out that Placido Polanco was out for more than a month after dislocating his left shoulder in 2006. Hopefully, Hollimon's shoulder injury doesn't compel the Tigers to re-sign Neifi Perez and make him the starting shortstop for your Toledo Mud Hens.
Last season with Erie and Toledo, Hollimon hit .280/.366/.473 with 14 home runs, 78 RBI, and 17 stolen bases in 132 games.
Results from the MRI exam will be posted here as soon as it's reported.
UPDATE: At Take 75 North, Matt writes about the players that might be affected by Hollimon's injury and speculates how this might affect the Mud Hens.
UPDATE #2: Via Jason Beck, Jim Leyland says that Hollimon's injury isn't as bad as originally feared. The dislocation was partial, much like what Wilkin Ramirez suffered last week.