Cervelli Injured, Girardi Pissed

In the 9th inning of today's game Tampa Bay second baseman Elliot Johnson steamrolled Yankees catcher Francisco Cervelli. Cervelli was removed from the game and taken for x-rays. The Yankees think he may have a broken hand or wrist.

The kid's year may now be ruined because of stupid play in a meaningless spring training game, and as one might imagine, Joe Girardi was not pleased. “I think it’s uncalled for in spring training. You get people hurt and that’s what we got, we got Cervelli hurt,” Girardi said.

“I’ve always known that you don’t do it. I know kids play aggressive and play hard. That’s how you want them to play. But maybe if it happens too much you should mention something.”

“It’s one thing to get hit by a pitch that gets away or twist an ankle running the bases. I don’t understand it,” said Girardi, who felt Johnson should have simply slid into the plate. “I don’t understand it. During the season I’m all for. It happens in the season, I understand it. In spring training, I don’t really.”

Johnson defended his actions saying, “From my point of view, I’m trying to score a run. … His left foot was right there blocking the plate. My options were to hook around and slide and I thought that would take too much time and I would be out.” He also said that he was "not trying to hurt anybody, especially in a Spring Training game."

This is not the first incident like this for the overzealous Rays this spring. Earlier this week Carl Crawford ran over one of the Astros catchers. Manager Joe Maddon told the Tampa writers "I loved the hardball," Maddon said. "We're playing it hard, we're playing it right. It was a bang-bang play at the plate. I couldn't tell exactly where the catcher was in regard to the plate. He was trying to score a run right there, and that was part of the game." However Maddon was too gutless to talk to any of the New York writers.

UPDATE: Francisco Cervelli fractured his right wrist.

The first chance for payback comes Wednesday.