Eric Hinske spent too much time in the batting cage early in the season and developed tendinitis in his wrist. However, the problem that sent him to the disabled list on May 26th, likely occurred when he jammed his wrist during the second week of May. He believes that is when he deeply bruised his hammate bone. Hinske tried adjusting the padding on his batting gloves in order to stay in the lineup and that maneuver worked for a few days, but eventually Toronto decided he needed surgery to remove the bone. The 25-year-old underwent surgery on the 28th and likely needs another five weeks to recover, though optimistic projections have him back in two.

Hinske's wrist problems are likely responsible for his sophomore slump. I don't expect him to completely bounce back from this injury until at least August and possibly not until next year. However, there is no reason to believe that 2002 was his peak.

The Blue Jays called up CR-L Howie Clark to replace 3B-L Hinske on the roster. We looked at Clark when he made his major league debut last year and again when Toronto signed him to a minor league deal this off-season. The 29-year-old was hitting .237 with a .300 OBP and .386 SLG on 27 H, 8 2B, and 3HR with an 11:8 BB:K and 1/1 SB% in 114 AB at AAA Syracuse in the International League at the time of his promotion. He's covered a couple games at third, but IF-R Mike Bordick and UT-R Dave Berg are picking up the majority of the playing time created by Hinske's injury.

On Wednesday, Toronto placed OF-R Shannon Stewart and RHP Pete Walker on the disabled list. Stewart first sat out the Blue Jays' May 25th game in New York due to tightness in both of his hamstrings. After three days of rest, he started Toronto's May 28th game against the White Sox, but he continued to have trouble, particularly with his right hamstring, so the Blue Jays sent him back to the bench. When it looked like Stewart wouldn't be available for this weekend's series in Cincinnati, the team decided they shouldn't continue to play a man short and placed him on the DL, retroactive to the 29th.

As Toronto isn't even saying he's strained the hamstring, he shouldn't miss a lot of time. The Blue Jays just want him to rest until he's comfortable playing without worrying that he could severely injury himself at any time. Stewart should be back within a few days of June 13th when he's first eligible to leave the DL. However, the Blue Jays may hold him out until the 17th when they head to Baltimore for three games, so that he doesn't have to play on turf right away.

Toronto called up OF-R Jayson Werth to replace Stewart on the roster. While Stewart was sidelined, OF-R Reed Johnson picked up most of his playing time. Johnson performed well when given the opportunity, so he will likely continue to receive regular at-bats, though with Werth now on the roster those at-bats probably will be spread around the outfield. Werth will continue to bounce between AAA and the majors, as the Blue Jays don't want him in the majors unless he's going to be playing regularly. Fortunately, Toronto's offense has scored more runs than any other team in baseball this year and should be able to weather a few weeks without Stewart.

Pete Walker's injury probably will cause them more problems than Stewart's trip to the DL. Walker strained his left patellar tendon when his right leg reportedly gave out while he was delivering a pitch in the bottom of the eighth inning of Blue Jays' June 3rd game in St. Louis. Toronto doesn't believe he'll need surgery to repair the damage, but he is projected to miss at least seven weeks.

The Blue Jays called up RHP Josh Towers to replace Walker on the roster. Unfortunately, Towers' last stint in the majors confirmed he has not yet conquered his home run problem. Over 4.1 IP, his .5 G-F led to 3 HR. The Blue Jays will want to use him sparingly and should look for an alternative. Unfortunately, they don't have an abundance of options at AAA. Towers had returned to the minors on June 1st, as Toronto wanted to add another position player, C-R Ken Huckaby, for interleague play in NL parks.

With C-R Kevin Cash at AAA, the Blue Jays don't even need to keep Huckaby in the organization as injury insurance. Adding him as a third catcher for interleague play wastes a roster spot; almost everyone on Toronto's AAA roster would have been a better choice. However, depending on whether the Blue Jays were more interested in carrying an extra infielder or an outfielder, they should have called up either 3B-R Tony Zuniga or OF-R Mike Colangelo. With both players, there is a risk that the Blue Jays would lose them on waivers when returning them to the minors. Both possess skills that likely at least merit bench jobs in the majors, but while these are useful players, Toronto isn't grooming them for future use. If a team isn't going to promote AAAA talent for fear of losing the player on waivers, then there is little point in having the player in the organization.