Apr. 7—OXFORD — Ole Miss will be without its leading long-ball hitter for at least the next two weekends but maybe not for the rest of the season.
Rebels coach Mike Bianco confirmed Tuesday night that senior captain Tim Elko sustained a torn ACL in a collision with the North Alabama first baseman in the Rebels’ 20-6 win Monday.
In most sports an ACL tear is an automatic season-ender. Elko will not have surgery immediately but will try to rehab the knee with hopes of being able to resume play this season as a hitter.
Ole Miss defeated Alcorn State 8-1 on Tuesday.
No. 3 Ole Miss (23-6) is at home against No. 2 Arkansas for three SEC games beginning Friday at 6:30.
Bianco said he expects Elko to miss the Arkansas series and next week’s trip to Mississippi State. After that there are unknowns such as Elko’s pain tolerance and how his knee responds.
“We’ve learned a lot from the doctors today and how different this injury is for different people,” Bianco said. “The first thing is to get him pain free to walk around and go from there. Then it’s a thing of is he able to do it? Some can, and some cant.”
Elko, a senior from Lutz, Florida, went into Monday’s game hitting .350 and leading the SEC — and ranking fifth nationally — with 35 RBIs.
He reached base on a throwing error in the fourth and got tangled up with UNA first baseman Harris Kain. Elko went to the ground and immediately held his knee. He was assisted from the field and later returned to the dugout on crutches.
The injury comes as Elko received national attention for his production throughout March. The National College Baseball Writers Association named him hitter of the month after Elko hit .424 with seven doubles, nine home runs and 33 RBIs in 17 games.
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