Sizemore Breaks Leg

Update: Sizemore has a non-displaced fracture in his left ankle. That's relatively good news because it's the least serious kind of fracture and he is expected to be ready well ahead of spring training. Dombrowski said it will have no bearing on their off-season plans. Missing time in the competitive AFL is still not a good thing though.

According to the Arizona Fall League Twitter account (via Rotoworld), Tigers second base prospect Scott Sizemore suffered a fractured left tibia in a collision during yesterday's game. There is no official word from the Tigers as of yet but he will surely miss the rest of the AFL season. We won't know how serious of a break it is until he goes back to Detroit to get examined. Regardless, this is bad news for Sizemore and the Tigers.

The injury will likely impact the Tigers off-season plans. Dave Dombrowski hinted a couple weeks ago that Sizemore was ready to step in and become a starter for the Tigers next year. This would perhaps mean that they could allow free agent Placido Polanco to sign elsewhere. A good AFL season for Sizemore (and he was off to a strong start) might have made the decision relatively easy.

Now, there is a lot more uncertainty. Hopefully, Sizemore will be ready for spring training but right now I think it's going to be difficult for Dombrowski to count on an unproven second baseman with a broken leg to be ready to start on opening day. At the very least, he loses some development time.

The last month has not been the best of times for Tigers fans.