Feb. 25, 2008

Vandy's Alvarez banged up         

Vanderbilt picked up two wins at the DeMarini Invitational over the weekend but left Tempe, Ariz., holding its breath.

All-world third baseman Pedro Alvarez missed games against Arizona State and Miami (Ohio) with an injury to his right wrist. Reached late Monday night, coach Tim Corbin did not have an update and he expected to find out more on Tuesday.

In a postgame interview posted on the Commodores' Web site after a 4-3 win over the RedHawks, Corbin said, "We're going to hold him out here for a while," adding that Alvarez was supposed to see a hand specialist Monday "to see what the story is."

Corbin went on to say in the interview: "We'd rather take it slow now than screw him up for a month or so. I don't think there's any ligament damage, but he doesn't have any grip-strength, and he can't throw the ball. That makes it tough to play baseball."

Alvarez, regarded by many as the best hitter in college baseball, hit .368 with 18 homers and 68 RBI a year ago. Andrew Giobbi started in his place.