Head banger: Reds' Hamilton suffers concussion

By John Halpin
Published

Reds OF Billy Hamilton hit his head against the outfield fence while making a terrific catch on Wednesday night. Hamilton suffered a mild concussion on the play, and isn't expected to play today. The Cincinnati Enquirer suspects that Hamilton could be done for the season, and if the issue doesn't clear up today, that's probably a good bet.

If you need a replacement for Hamilton's speed, try Arizona's Ender Inciarte, who is owned in just 2.1 percent of FOXSports.com leagues. Inciarte has 26 steals between the minors and majors this season, including three this week.

Wednesday's studs & duds

Stud: Blue Jays SP Mark Buehrle struck out 10 batters over eight scoreless innings against the Mariners. Buehrle normally doesn't strike out 10 guys over two starts.

Stud: Cubs SP Jake Arrieta whiffed 10 Cardinals over seven innings, and allowed just one unearned run.

Stud: Clayton Kershaw gave up one run and struck out 11 Giants in eight innings. He finishes the season at 21-3 with a 1.77 ERA and a 0.86 WHIP. That's pretty good.

Dud: Rays SP Jake Odorizzi allowed five runs and 10 baserunners in three-plus innings against the Red Sox.

News & notes

The Dodgers clinched the NL West with their win last night. They're off today, but look for some players to rest over the weekend.

Red Sox DH David Ortiz (wrist) didn't play Wednesday, and his status for the rest of the season is uncertain. Teammate Mike Napoli (foot) hasn't played since September 17, and his return is also unclear.

Yankees OF Carlos Beltran (elbow) is done for the season. 1B Mark Teixeiira (wrist) might be done as well, and the return of OF Jacoby Ellsbury (hamstring) is an iffy proposition. Derek Jeter might need to play every position this weekend, like Bugs Bunny against the Gashouse Gorillas.

What's that? You've never seen that particular Bugs Bunny cartoon? Here's a link - you'll love it.

The Mets and Nationals have a doubleheader scheduled today, with the first pitch scheduled for 1:05 p.m. ET. 

Twins 3B Trevor Plouffe broke his forearm on Wednesday, so he's done.

Padres RP Joaquin Benoit got his first save since August 26 on Wednesday. Better late than never. Teammate Everth Cabrera (hamstring) is officially done for the season.

Evan Gattis is scheduled to return to the Braves' lineup today. 

Nationals 3B/OF Ryan Zimmerman was supposed to return to the lineup on Wednesday, but a rainout postponed that plan. With the Nats having doubleheaders today and Friday, look for Zimmerman to play a couple of games.

Pirates C Russell Martin left Tuesday's game with a tight hamstring, and his status for tonight is TBD. The Pirates can still win the NL Central, so Martin might try to play.

The Mets aren't sure when C Travis d'Arnaud will return to the lineup. The New York Post says that d'Arnaud is "battling an undisclosed physical issue."

Angels OF Josh Hamilton (ribs) won't play this weekend.

Streaming starters

Scott Feldman was good enough Wednesday to raise our record to 102-60 for the season. Today's pick is Giants SP Yusemiro Petit (owned in 27 percent of FOXSports.com leagues) against the Padres, while Friday's selection is Mets' lefty Jon Niese (15.3 percent owned) versus the Astros.

See you back here tomorrow morning for the season's final blog post!