Mariners' Ty France placed on 10-day IL with left elbow sprain

The news that France is IL-bound comes as no surprise. On Thursday, France left the Mariners' 2-1 victory over the Oakland A's in the fifth inning after a collision at first base with Oakland's Sheldon Neuse. 

France may have avoided the worst, telling MLB.com he was feeling better and optimistic he won't be on the IL long. 

Before the injury, the 27-year-old France had played in all but one game this season for the Mariners. 

France leads the Mariners in RBI (45), batting average (.316), on-base percentage (.390) and slugging percentage (.476). 

The Mariners recalled infielder Drew Ellis from Triple-A Tacoma to take France's spot on the active roster. 

Ellis batted .200/.294/.400 with a home run and five RBIs in four Triple-A games this season. Ellis was acquired by the Mariners earlier this month off waivers from the Arizona Diamondbacks. In six games with the Diamondbacks, Ellis had two hits, a walk and an RBI in 14 plate appearances.