Punto headed back to Minnesota to be examined
Twins infielder Nick Punto will return to Minnesota on Thursday to have a precautionary MRI on his ribcage after he was kept out of the lineup again due to sore ribs.
Punto has been battling soreness in his ribs since diving headfirst into first base in Saturday night’s contest against the Astros. He started Tuesday’s game at Milwaukee but left in the seventh inning due to what trainers called cramping in his ribcage.
Punto said Wednesday that he’s been frustrated by the injury as his ribs are still feeling pretty sore. The club now hopes to determine the exact cause of why Punto’s ribs are sore.
Kelly's Corner 
Poor Nick. He plays so hard and pays for it. When he is healthy, he competes with the best players in baseball. I understand his daughter even dives into first base like he does. Here come the medical bills for her too. Hope the MRI does not show any REAL damage.
Poor Nick??? This is self-inflicted stupidity again! Sliding into first base time after time is about the dumbest baserunning play on the planet. My kid’s traveling coaches would chew their butts out if they continued to make brain-dead plays that “look” cool. Punto is a nothing more than a glorified utility player who is lucky the Twin’s are too cheap and loyal to bring in real competition for his playing time. How many stints on the DL does it take for this to sink in? We have been down this road way to many times. He should be fined by Gardy for that. Have Nicky check out Myth Busters or Sports Science to clarify the obvious? Sliding into first only slows you down and generally leads to a much higher injury risk. Like the Twin’s can afford to have Punto out with Tolbert as the primary back-up. It’s a sad statement when the production drop-off from Punto is even considered debatable.
Dittos Mike. Gardy blasted Punto last year for the first base dives. I don’t know if a money fine would get through to him. He does love to play…so maybe bench him immediately every time he dives into first. Immediate discipline has the best chance of changing behavior. Punto even admitted that the ribs injury surprised him, and that he expected shoulder or hand/finger injuries moreso. Duh! Running through the base only jeopardizes an ankle tweak, which is exceedingly rare. We need a “safe” call at first, not some lame swan dive that makes the player come up literally “lame”!
A little harsh mike and Joe! but there is truth to your blasts….but if you truly are fans of the twins…you would know that Nick brings everything to the table every night…the kid has a huge heart and that can’t be measured by any stat. The effect that he has on the rest of the team is huge and we all know he deserves a gold glove. So if diving into first isn’t the safest or fastest..the fact is you guys are sell outs…If he was hitting .320 u would be all over his jockstrap!
Sorry laffer – Mike and joel are correct. To say that Nick has a tremendous effect on the team is laughable. Lots of guys have huge hearts on this club. Do you really think that Punto inspires Mauer, Morneau or Span? You need to be a producer to be a leader otherwise you are just an overpaid cheerleader. Of course we would be thrilled with him if he was hitting .320 but the sad fact is that he never will. Punto is a good utility player and is an asset in that role but he is no more than that. You don’t help a ball club when you injure yourself due to abolute stupidity.
I disagree respectfully…I never said tremendous impact dramaman…and no I dont think he inspires those great players you referenced…I said he impacts the team in a positive way…do you think management would put such faith in Nick if he was a glorified utility player? He plays hard…very hard…thats his style and all players get injured…part of the game…if diving into first is wrong…I dont want to be right. Nick plays the game right…Charlie Hustle would be proud!