The Angels announced on Thursday that Jose Pujols has a bone bruise in his left knee, but he has been cleared to play Friday, when the club opens a three-game series against the Mariners in Seattle.
Pujols missed the Angels' 3-1 loss to the A's on Wednesday after flying to Southern California to be evaluated by Dr. Steven Yoon. Imaging performed on Wednesday revealed the bone bruise, and Pujols received Viscosupplementation, a lubricating injection, to help alleviate the discomfort in his left knee.
Pujols hurt his knee while sliding into second base on a double on Friday night in Texas. He played through the ailment for the next four games, though his running appeared to grow increasingly pained.
The 37-year-old slugger is hitting .244, with a .682 OPS, 21 home runs and a team-high 93 RBIs in 127 games this season. He has started to heat up at the plate of late, batting .323 with three doubles, four home runs and 25 RBIs over his past 22 games.
Since joining the Angels, Pujols has had three offseason surgeries in five years to address various lower-body injuries.
Worth noting
• Right-hander Daniel Wright cleared waivers, and he was outrighted to Triple-A Salt Lake. Wright, 26, had been designated for assignment by the Angels last week.