SEATTLE — Los Angeles Angels slugger Vladimir Guerrero is leaving a road trip and heading back to Los Angeles for further tests on an injured chest muscle.
Manager Mike Scioscia said an MRI Thursday revealed a strained pectoral muscle. The 34-year-old Guerrero was to fly to Los Angeles to see team orthopedist Dr. Lewis Yocum on Friday.
Yocum will determine whether the first player since Lou Gehrig to bat at least .300 with at least 25 home runs in 11 consecutive seasons will rejoin the Angels' road trip in Minnesota this weekend.
Guerrero played in all eight of the Angels' games as the designated hitter before sitting out Thursday night's game at Seattle.
He is batting .250 with just one home run — his only extra-base hit — and three RBIs. But he said the injury is not affecting his hitting, only his fielding.
"I want to get back to playing right field," he said in the clubhouse through an interpreter. "The way I am swinging the bat has nothing to do with this. ... I just haven't gotten into the swing of things."
He said he first felt discomfort during an exhibition against the Dodgers four days before opening day.
"It progressed to the point that I can't play the field, and I want to take care of it," he said.
Asked if the Angels would be OK using Guerrero indefinitely as a DH only, Scioscia said, "We're going to have to be.
"Obviously (it's about) what Vlad brings to our team, and the lion's share of what he brings is hitting right in the middle of the lineup and swinging the bat," the manager said. "And if we can get that, it goes a long way to building an offense.
"We'll take it one step at a time. If it's something where he's limited to that role, we obviously have enough (outfield) depth to work around that."
Gary Matthews Jr. made his third start of the season in right field on Thursday. Bobby Abreu, the DH Thursday, has started six times in right field. They entered the night with no home runs and six RBIs combined.
NADY NEEDS MORE TESTS ON AILING ELBOW: Hoping to avoid season-ending surgery, New York Yankees right fielder Xavier Nady is headed for more tests on his injured right elbow.
Nady had a second X-ray on Thursday and is scheduled for a CT scan Friday. He's trying to remain optimistic that he'll be able to return to the lineup this year.
"If you can avoid surgery at all costs, that's what you want to do," Nady said. "If there's a chance for rehab, it's obviously the best way to go. But I think you want to be 100 percent on what's going on in there, so they're going to have every test done."
Nady felt a sharp pain in his right elbow while making a throw Tuesday night at Tampa Bay. New York placed him on the 15-day disabled list Thursday, retroactive to a day earlier, and recalled right-handed reliever David Robertson from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
Acquired last July from Pittsburgh, Nady had Tommy John surgery in September 2001. The Yankees hope he doesn't need the elbow ligament replacement procedure again, which would probably end his season.
"The fact that they want to do another test, there's some hope there," manager Joe Girardi said. "So we're going to wait to see what the test brings about tomorrow. I'm not sure when we'll have the results, because we have another day game. But they're not done testing."
The Yankees also plan to consult with Los Angeles Angels medical director Dr. Lewis Yocum, who performed Nady's previous elbow surgery.
Nady said he could swing a bat effectively five months after that operation, but it took longer to gain enough arm strength to play defense.
This injury could cost Nady a considerable amount of money because he can become a free agent after the season. Girardi said Wednesday that the initial report from an MRI exam on Nady's elbow was "not good."
"I don't know exactly what he wants to look at with the CT scan. Just the way I guess the bone is or something," Nady said. "I'm trying to stay as positive as I can. It's a frustrating process, but if there's any hope that it could be a shorter period than obviously having surgery, it would be a good end result and that's what I'm hoping for."