In what has almost become an annual event, Royals captain Mike Sweeney appears to be headed back to the disabled list. Manager Buddy Bell indicated that it was likely that the designated hitter/first baseman would be headed back after Sweeney felt pain in his back while running out a grounder in the seventh inning Monday. He’s hitting .176 this season with two home runs and six RBI’s. He missed a total of 85 games in 2003 and 2004 with back problems.
Reliever Luke Hudson has been optioned for assignment after a disastrous appearance last weekend. On Sunday Hudson faced four Oakland batters and didn’t retire any of them. He hit a batter with the bases loaded to break a 5-5 tie. In 11 appearances, Hudson was 0-3 with an 8.74 ERA.Right handed pitcher Steve Andrade has been called up from Class AAA Omaha to take his spot on the roster.
