Frank Francisco initially expressed some optimism that he could return from a strained rib cage to pitch at some point in the playoffs, but Bill Ladson of MLB.com reports that the Rangers have all but ruled out the setup man until 2011.
Francisco threw a 20-pitch bullpen session yesterday and reported no problems, but he’s been sidelined since late August and throwing him right back into the fire in a World Series game is unlikely even if he continues to avoid setbacks.
Francisco’s injury played a part in the Rangers’ bullpen implosion in Game 1 of the ALCS, because had he been healthy there’s a pretty good chance manager Ron Washington would have simply turned to Francisco to work the eighth inning instead of playing musical relievers.
After losing ninth-inning duties to Neftali Feliz early on, Francisco rebounded to post a 2.84 ERA, .220 opponents’ batting average, and 57/16 K/BB ratio in 50.2 innings prior to landing on the disabled list. He pitched the eighth inning in 34 of his 56 appearances overall.
