Royals put Vinnie Pasquantino on IL after hand surgery

The Kansas City Royals will be without first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino for several weeks after he underwent surgery Sunday for a fractured hamate bone in his right hand, an injury that occurred during Saturday’s game against the Houston Astros. The team estimates his recovery timeline at four to six weeks.

Pasquantino was hurt in the fifth inning of the Royals’ 8-7 loss at Kauffman Stadium. After popping out, he was seen clutching his hand in pain and walked directly to the clubhouse. The Royals later confirmed the hamate fracture, a common baseball injury this season that has also sidelined stars like Francisco Lindor and Corbin Carroll. Pasquantino had surgery the following morning.

The injury interrupts a positive stretch for the 28-year-old, who had been working his way out of a career-worst batting slump. Before exiting Saturday, he was 1-for-3 with an RBI single and had hit safely in 12 of his last 15 games. Manager Matt Quatraro expressed frustration over the timing. “I just told him I was frustrated for him,” Quatraro said. “Especially as he’s got himself going, you never want to lose any of the guys to injury. For him, it stinks because I know how hard he’s worked to...