Ken

Harvey

Harvey was scratched from the lineup yesterday after he felt pain near his left rib cage while taking batting practice. “It was a low pitch away and I took a half-hearted swing,” Harvey said. “I was kind of freaked out that I felt something on a swing when I didn’t let it go. On the next pitch, I really let it go, and I hurt it even more.” This does not sound good, so depending on the results of the MRI, Harvey could be headed to the disabled list. Matt Stairs, who is scheduled to be activated off the DL today, would take his place in the lineup, if Harvey is unable to play for an extended period of time.

Harvey suffered a strained right knee while trapped in a rundown between second and third in the eighth inning of last night’s game. He will be examined further today but is expected to miss at least a few games. Adjust your lineup accordingly.

He has not recovered from the injury as quickly as the Royals had hoped. An MRI was deemed necessary to ensure that there is nothing seriously wrong with Harvey’s knee.

The swelling around the knee has subsided, and the promising Harvey may now be able to play in the next day or so.

He didn’t play against the Twins yesterday afternoon, but should be in the starting lineup today against the Tigers. Harvey had missed 14 games with a strained muscle in his left rib cage.

Royals GM Allard Baird seems to realize that Pickering could be his team’s second best hitter if given the chance, but we’d be very surprised to see manager Tony Pena use him over Harvey initially. “I think Harvey is going to have a big year,’' Pena said. ''He has hit everywhere he has played. I’m going to play him, and I expect big numbers from him. But ... nothing is settled. There is nothing settled.” Sure there isn’t. It’s entirely possible Pickering will return to Triple-A Omaha.

If Harvey needs to miss more games, he could be placed on the bereavement list with the Royals calling up a replacement.

Harvey did pinch-hit, and drove in the tying run in the ninth inning.

When Aaron Guiel lost his job, we’d like to have seen the Royals put Matt Stairs in left field, letting Harvey DH, as both Stairs and Harvey deserve to play full-time. They’ll have to contend with each other and David DeJesus for at-bats, but all three are worthy starters in AL-only leagues, even though Harvey’s bound to cool off.

If Sweeney had been healthy, Harvey would have been on the bench in Busch Stadium. The rookie DH is hitting .438 in his last eight games.