HOUSTON (SportsRadio 610)- Astros first baseman Yuli Gurriel is hopeful his stint on the injured list for a stiff neck is a short one.
"I think it's a lot of time, actually. 10 days," Gurriel said Saturday through an interpreter. "I know that as the best thing for the team. We need an extra guy in there. So I'll be ready when the time comes."
The Astros placed Gurriel on the 10-day IL before Friday's game, retroactive to August 3, after he had already missed both games against the Los Angeles Dodgers and Thursday's series opener against the Minnesota Twins. He said he slept bad on his neck, but it wasn't the first time it had happened to him in the last few weeks.
"I think it's something that first happened when we were in Chicago and then it got better for a while, and then I had a couple days there Los Angeles where I was feeling an issue in my neck."
Gurriel was on the field before Saturday's game and he says his neck is making great progress.
"I feel a lot better. Every single day I'm getting better with it, and today Finally I was able to take some ground balls and hit some in the cage."
The Astros first baseman would be eligible to return to action for the team's series in Anaheim next weekend.
