Yoenis' absence likely to reach four games

ANAHEIM -- Yoenis Cespedes' sore left wrist kept him out of the lineup a third straight game on Sunday, and there's a chance it might sideline him on Monday in Houston, manager Bob Melvin said before the A's finale at Angel Stadium.

Cespedes, who has declined to speak to reporters about the ailment, sustained the injury while taking batting practice before Friday's game, and he hasn't hit since -- though he did take dry swings on Sunday.

"Until we get him in the cage, he swings full and gets some batting practice and is comfortable there, you won't see him in a game," Melvin said. "We're not there yet."

Melvin isn't sure of an exact recovery timetable, but he'd like his left fielder to test the wrist in a more casual setting one day, before returning to BP the next. That would indicate that this year's Chevrolet Home Run Derby champ is at least two days away from a return to the lineup.

"I would doubt tomorrow, because we want to make sure he takes some swings on the field," Melvin said, all but ruling out the club's series opener in Houston on Monday. "If that happens tomorrow then potentially, but I'd probably doubt it."

Before Sunday's game Cespedes sported a tight wrap on the wrist and was icing it in the clubhouse.

Melvin has hinted that Cespedes could be available to pinch-run. But should the injury linger long enough to merit a trip to the disabled list -- and there has been no talk publicly of that -- Cespedes' stint could be backdated to last Sunday because of the All-Star break. If he were to run, it would essentially delay his return by a week.