Royals hold Omar Infante out of Friday game because of shoulder concerns

The Royals have scratched Omar Infante from Friday’s minor-league game because of lingering concerns about the health of his inflamed right shoulder. Infante has been able to complete throwing drills in recent days, but manager Ned Yost is not yet comfortable testing him in a game.

"I’m watching him throw, and I just don’t really know that he’s ready to cut one loose yet," Yost said.

The new plan calls for Infante to return to action on Monday. He could play the designated hitter in weekend games. He was scheduled to play with shortstop Alcides Escobar against Rangers minor-leaguers on Friday morning. Instead, Escobar will make his Cactus League debut. Escobar missed a few days because of paternity leave.

Yost insisted Infante was making progress in his recovery. He dealt with a similar issue during 2005 spring training with Detroit.

"And it took him about two weeks to get through it in spring training," Yost said. "It’s just one those things where you come up, you try to do a little bit too much too soon. And it gets inflamed and you’ve got to back off and let it get out of there. And then you roll."

This story was originally published March 6, 2014 at 6:06 PM with the headline "Royals hold Omar Infante out of Friday game because of shoulder concerns."