Major league RBI leader Frank Thomas of the Chicago White Sox will miss at least three weeks with a stress fracture in his left foot.
A bone scan revealed the fracture of the long bone from the ankle to the toe, the team said today. Thomas was placed on the 15-day disabled list - his first trip to the DL since entering the league in 1990."We can't replace him (but) this is not a one-man club," general manager Ron Schueler said. "We've got talent around him. We've got to step it up a notch."
Thomas' stretch of 346 straight games played is second longest in the majors, almost 2,000 fewer than Baltimore's Cal Ripken Jr. He hadn't missed a game since the end of the 1993 season.
Thomas leads the majors in RBIs with 85, is fourth in the AL in batting with a .349 average, seventh in home runs with 23, fifth in on-base percentage at .455 and seventh in slugging percentage at .614.
The loss of the two-time Most Valuable Player is a major blow to the White Sox, who play tonight in Kansas. The team begins the second half of the season just two games behind AL Central leader Cleveland.
Thomas injured his foot Thursday in Cleveland when he stepped partially off the bag while rounding first base. X-rays showed no break, and the injury was listed as a sprain.
"I've never been on the DL before, but something is really wrong," Thomas said Tuesday when he was forced to miss the All-Star game. "What concerns me more than anything is why I can't walk."
"It's getting worse," Thomas said. "The pain is worse and the swelling is out of hand. I can't walk. I can't even move. I don't know how I played the last two games in Cleveland."
Chicago will use outfielders Dave Martinez and Tony Phillips or third baseman Robin Ventura at first in Thomas' absence.
"We'll pick up the slack. But it has been frustrating. I'm not a cheerleader and I hate being one," said Thomas.
Thomas is the only major league player to have a .300 or better average with at least 20 homers, 100 RBIs, 100 walks and 100 runs scored over five straight seasons.
The White Sox called up Chris Snopek from the minors to take Thomas' place on the roster.
Schueler said Thomas needs to stay off the foot as much as possible so it can heal quickly. When he walks, he has to do so with a special shoe.