There are few things that cure the hangover from several losses like the humanization of the squad — yesterday, you might have said I was a bit negative. Today, I feel refreshed, having just met the squad at the season ticketholders’ Meet and Greet event at the Rio Tinto. While things do look a bit perilous right now, there’s no reason to not get behind the team, and this served as an excellent a reminder as one can have.
If you thought our injuries were bad a month ago, think again. Out injured are:
- Most definitely out: Chris Agorsor, with a hand fracture he sustained during the reserves match at Houston when he fell badly; Nelson Gonzalez with his foot fracture; Chris Wingert, who also fell badly, as we’ve discussed; and the one and only Javier Morales, whose destroyers we face tonight.
- Making their way back to fitness, or ‘doubtful’ that they’ll appear: Ned Grabavoy, with an adductor strain (I’ve just googled to find out what an adductor is); and Kyle Reynish, who, post-concussion, has sustained a sprained ankle during a tackle.
- Likely out, or what the MLS injury report terms ‘questionable’: Arturo Alvarez, suffering from knee contusion; Fabian Espindola, also suffering from knee contusion; Jamison Olave, who strained a ligament in his knee; and Nick Rimando, suffering from back contusion suffered against Houston.
- ‘Probably’ able to make the match: Jean Alexandre, suffering from internal pain in his knee; and Alvaro Saborio, suffering from knee effusion (apparently it’s “water on the knee.”)
Treacherous, isn’t it? It leaves our squad looking a bit threadbare. The following are also interesting to note:
- Nat Borchers missed the Meet and Greet last night through sickness, though it’s not clear if it will affect his fitness for the weekend or what his particular ailment was.
- Cody Arnoux told me he is still not up to full fitness yet, but hopes to be ready to get back to the pitch soon. I’d very much like to see this man on the pitch. He’s made some appearances for the reserves, so I remain optimistic.
- We’ll have to wait a bit to see Chris Agorsor on the pitch — he goes in for surgery on his hand on Thursday, though I don’t expect he’ll take as long to hear as Chris Wingert, whose giant cast was quite remarkable. It’s likely to keep his wrist completely immobilized, but my word, that must be annoying.
In keeping with this bulleted theme, here are some general notes from the meet and greet:
- Kyle Beckerman was quite nice and talkative, and he had some very good things to say about Jurgen Klinsmann after I congratulated him on his latest cap. Kyle sounds just as casual as every interview I’ve ever heard with him, which, if you have time to hear only one, make it the PitchPass interview from recent weeks, is a great thing.
- Jamison Olave seemed bemused by my Borlave 64 kit after a short moment of confusion — he signed his half of it, and I suppose now I’ll continue my wait for Nat Borchers.
- Andy Williams was somehow not tweeting the entire team — that’s real dedication to the fans!
- Jason Kreis was signing while watching the Monterrey - Seattle match, which was perhaps not unexpected. I’d imagine he was rooting for Monterrey, but I wouldn’t be surprised if there was some bitterness involved in that support.
- Nick Rimando did not look entirely comfortable sitting the entire time, undoubtedly the result of his back injury. Nice guy, though!
I could ramble on for hours about these folks, so I’ll leave it at that and relate other stories as they come to mind. I’ll get to the match preview in the next two or so days, and I have a few other things in the works that I’ll bring to you soon. The lineup may write itself, given our injury list, but I’ll be hoping desperately for some recoveries.
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