Bourgeois out 4 to 6 weeks with shoulder fracture

GOODYEAR, Ariz. — A left shoulder fracture will force Reds outfielder Jason Bourgeois to miss four to six weeks.

Bourgeois went down as he ran to first on a bunt attempt in Saturday's game, but the injury occurred earlier.

"He dove into a base – I think second base – in the very first game," Reds manager Bryan Price said. "He had a little bit of soreness. He treated it. We kept him out for a day or two. Then he was good to go.

"I guess – unbeknownst to us – he still has sensation in there. It wasn't debilitating. It didn't prevent him from being able to play. He didn't mention it. He wanted to go out there and compete. He knows there's jobs on the team. He really wanted to play. He didn't want to make a big deal of it. Unfortunately, there probably was some issues and they were exacerbated (Saturday) when he tried to get out of the box."

Bourgeois, who is primarily a center-fielder, didn't want to talk about the injury until getting the full MRI results.

Bourgeois, 33, was competing for a back-up outfielder spot. He was having a good spring (.350 in 20 at-bats) and has spent part of the last five seasons in the big leagues. He's a .258 career hitter and signed a minor league deal with the Reds last year. He played most of the year at Triple-A Louisville, hitting .278 with four home runs and 43 RBI. He played 18 games for the Reds last year after a September call-up.

With Bourgeois out, Brennan Boesch will almost certainly make the team. Boesch is having a terrific spring at the plate: He went into Sunday hitting .429 with two home runs and a team-leading five RBI.

The Reds have been using Boesch in center. They're confident he can play there.

"From what I've seen, yeah," Price said. "I don't want to say I was shocked he could do it. I just didn't know him as a center-fielder. He got a chance to play there a bit last year in Angels organization. I think he's looked very good, going into both gaps, going back on a ball, throwing. He looks like a natural in center field."