Angels Place Christian Moore on Injured List in Unfortunate Roster Move

Moore exited Wednesday night's game against the Atlanta Braves early with a thumb injury, which was initially labeled as irritation.

Just a day later, the infielder has landed on the 10-day IL.

As for timeline to return, Moore said he hopes he is sidelined for just a few weeks. The 22-year-old is hitting .189 with three home runs and eight runs batted in across 53 at-bats this season.

With Triple-A Salt Lake City, Moore was hitting .350 with four home runs and 18 RBIs.

The Angels also selected the contract of infielder Chad Stevens and released right-handed pitcher Hector Neris Thursday. Steven ranks in the 91st percentile among Triple-A hitters with a .307 batting average.

It's certainly a bad time for the Angels to lose Moore to injury. The Halos have been chasing a Wild Card spot, but have struggled to stay above .500.

The Angels' latest 8-2 loss to the Braves Wednesday did not help their cause, but manager Ray Montgomery is confident the team will manage to clinch a spot.

“Everybody knows what’s at stake,” Montgomery said. “They want to get over that hump, so to speak, too. We just can’t seem to find the right time and the right place to get over it. But we will. I’m confident we’ll continue to get after it. We’ll be fine.”

The Angels are 2.5 games back of Wild Card spot, and it remains to be seen whether the team will be buyers or sellers at this summer's trade deadline.

For more Angels news, head over to Angels on SI.