Florida second baseman [autotag]Cade Kurland[/autotag] has been playing injured since he took a ball off his hand during the series opener against Columbia a few back.
What was first believed to be a bone bruise is actually a fracture, Kurland revealed on Friday night after hitting a walk-off single against Mississippi State.
“I had an MRI on Monday and it turns out that for the past five weeks, I’ve been playing with a fractured hand,” Kurland said. “It’s been hard, but I’ve kind of just been doing the best I can to play through it and here we are.”
Kurland said he adjusted his batting grip to leave two fingers off the bat. He only recently moved back to nine now that the pain is becoming manageable. A lot of time spent in the training room makes it possible for him to take the field every day, but there is risk in playing with a crack in a bone.
“The way I work, I hit and I hit and I hit,” he said. “That’s my routine. That alone, my routine has changed. I’ve had to be much more conservative with my routine, which obviously isn’t favorable to me… It’s been hard but it’s one of those things where you put the team first and I’m just doing the best I can.”
The injury explains some unusual performances from Kurland throughout the season. A five-strikeout day against Miami was the first sign something wasn’t right. At the time, Kevin O’Sullivan told Gators Wire that it wasn’t much of a concern because “he doesn’t have many days like that.”
Sully was right. Kurland put together a nine-game hitting streak, but his average continued to drop and the strikeouts came in bunches. Kurland’s defense has been the bigger problem, though. He’s struggled to make certain throws, likely because he can’t get the grip on the ball that he’s used to.
“I’m throwing with my palm,” Kurland said.
There is no timeline for recovery from this injury, especially because Kurland is playing with it. He said he didn’t feel anything running to first after the walk-off, though.
Follow us @GatorsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.