Tampa Bay Rays' B.J. Upton aggravates ankle injury in return to lineup

NEW YORK — B.J. Upton talked before Wednesday's game about wanting to finish his disappointing season strong then purge it from his memory: "I'd like to flush this season down the toilet personally, for me.''

Now there's a question if the centerfielder's season might be over.

Upton was removed after the fifth inning, when his recently sprained left ankle prevented him from going hard after several balls. Manager Joe Maddon said they are going to "have to rest him for a bit," and they could decide to shut him down.

Upton said the ankle — which he sprained last Thursday — got worse as the game went on, but he hopes to return after a few days of rest and treatment.

"I want to play again,'' he said. "Hopefully these couple days will knock it out.''

After watching Upton misplay one fly ball, not go hard after another and limp while chasing a third, Maddon had seen enough: "Everybody's playing with a lot of intensity among our group, and if you're hurt to the point where you really can't get after it, I would prefer that he just gets well.''

Upton's season has been a disappointment all the way around. He never regained full strength in his left shoulder after offseason surgery, struggled at the plate and made mistakes in the field and on the bases, and was criticized for his attitude and reaction to being dropped from leadoff to the bottom of the order.

The .236 average, nine homers and 42 RBIs are a poor reflection of his ability, Upton said, and he is confident he will rebound but feels bad about not being able to do more this year.

"I'm not worried about me; that's going to happen," Upton, 25, said. "But this has been tough for me because I feel like if I had played the way I know how to, we may have given ourselves a better chance.

"There were so many times when I came to bat this year with runners in scoring position (23-for-99, .232), and I've come up with a couple of bases-loaded opportunities (3-for-10), and I've just got nothing out of them. It's just not me, you know what I mean?''

Pitching in: As bad as the bullpen has been, the Rays have gotten some good starting pitching. With Jeff Niemann's strong start following good outings by Matt Garza and David Price, Maddon insisted not all was lost. "I know I'm accused of looking for the silver lining, but there is one,'' he said. "I really am very pleased with how our young starters handled this moment.''

J.P. duty: J.P. Howell's dropoff has been a big part of the bullpen woes, and though he will continue to be used, Maddon said fatigue may be part of it.

"He's pitched more relief innings (153) than any pitcher for the last two years at a really high level against some very good hitters in some stressful moments, and against righties and lefties; he's not just asked to get a lefty out," Maddon said.

"He's been in a lot of key situations. He's done a great job. He's a great makeup guy. He needs to eat a little bit more, but other than that, he'll be fine. I'm not worried about him. I just want to make sure that we take care of him properly for the rest of this year and leading into next year, too."

Minor matters: Class A Charlotte beat Fort Myers (Twins) 7-4 to even the best-of-three Florida State League opening-round playoffs; Game 3 is tonight in Fort Myers. … Triple-A Durham beat Louisville (Reds) 8-4 in the opener of the best-of-five International League first-round series. RHP Jeremy Hellickson struck out 12 in 52/3 innings. Game 2 is tonight in Durham.

Miscellany: Not the best timing: Wednesday was rookie dress-up day, with dresses and wigs waiting in a half-dozen lockers. … Third-base coach Tom Foley turned 50 on Wednesday. … The Rays scored six runs in the four-games. … They were swept in a series of three or more games in New York for the first time since Sept. 12-14, 2006.