Ouch! Mi Rodilla Y Codo!

Jose Vidro missed another game yesterday with a wonky (Not a scientific term) elbow. It doesn’t appear to be a big deal, but he’s had very few at-bats this spring, because he’s been resting his surgically repaired knee. It may be a little while before he can get his timing down.

But, this hits on a larger issue. For whatever reason, second basemen have proven to be the least durable of the position players. There are hundreds of second basemen who’ve fallen off the cliff offensively or missed significant amounts of time due to injury after turning 30, which Vidro’s about to hit. His similar batter’s list includes players like Mike Lansing, Whitey Kurowski and Gil McDougald who put up solid numbers as 25-year olds, but were done by the time they turned 30.

Vidro’s a better hitter than any of them were, so even if he slips, he’ll still be useful. But the trend with second basemen is an ominous one, especially with his contract. He might be an expensive oft-injured pine-rider by the end.