Orioles center fielder Aaron Hicks placed on 10-day injured list with left hamstring strain – The Denver Post

The Orioles are already down one center fielder. After Monday night, they are down another.

Aaron Hicks was placed on the 10-day injured list with a left hamstring strain Tuesday after exiting Monday night’s 3-2 win over the Philadelphia Phillies. Outfielder Ryan McKenna was recalled from Triple-A Norfolk in a corresponding move.

Hicks dove for a line drive hit by Johan Rojas in the third inning, threw the ball back to the infield and sat for a moment before training staff members came out to evaluate him. He eventually left the game with what the team called a left hamstring injury and was replaced in center field by rookie Colton Cowser.

Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said Monday the injury could be a strain or a cramp, but he did not know until Hicks had the chance to be evaluated Tuesday.

Hicks ran to his right on the liner and fully stretched out to make a spectacular catch. Rojas was ruled out, although replay later showed the ball popped out of Hicks’ glove.

Entering Tuesday, Hicks is hitting .252/.349/.435 in 42 games for the Orioles this season with a .784 OPS. As his replacement, Cowser was a hero Monday, driving in the Orioles’ game-winning run in the ninth inning.

The Orioles are already without regular center fielder Cedric Mullins, who returned to the injured list last week, so Hicks’ exit could spell bad news. Mullins missed 20 games earlier this year with a groin strain, prompting the Orioles to sign Hicks after he was released by the New York Yankees.

“It was progressing, has been progressing,” Hyde said of Mullins’ health at the time. “It’s just not progressing at the rate that we were hoping, and so the right thing to do is to make sure he’s all the way healthy and running well before we activate him.”

Mullins took batting practice last week but said he didn’t know how long it would be until he could return.

With Hicks out, Austin Hays — who started Monday in left field — and McKenna can also play center. McKenna, 26, has posted a .707 OPS in 62 games with the Orioles this season and is batting .308/.444/.538 in his past 15 games with the Tides.

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