The Mets were without closer Francisco Rodriguez for two games after they suspended him for an alleged physical altercation he had with his girlfriend's father. As it turns out, the incident may cost Rodriguez more than just those two games.
Rodriguez, who was arrested and charged with third-degree assault and second-degree harassment for his alleged role in a dispute with the grandfather of his kids, may miss a significant amount of time with a torn thumb ligament supposedly suffered in the altercation, ESPN.com reports.
The closer will need surgery on the torn ligament — a procedure that in all likelihood end his 2010 campaign.
According to sources, the Mets haven't made a corresponding roster move, but a source did confirm to ESPN that Rodriguez tore the muscle during the altercation.
"You can make the assumption that the injury resulted from the incident last week," said an unnamed Mets official.
The injury for Rodriguez could be very costly. He already missed out on $125,000 during his two-game suspension, but if he were to miss the rest of the season, he'd lose out on even more of his $11.5 million salary since the injury came away from baseball.
Rodriguez pitched one scoreless inning during Saturday's game with the Phillies but was booed by fans in New York upon entering the game.
