Josh Hamilton To Return To Rangers Lineup Friday

And there's your verification. Injured Ranger Josh Hamilton will indeed return for the final weekend of the regular season, with the following schedule:

Thr #Rangers Josh Hamilton will play six innings Friday, DH Saturday and play full game Sunday.

It's impossible to know whether or not Hamilton feels 100%, but then, come this time of year, who does?

Josh Hamilton hasn't played since September 4th after colliding with the wall, but via Anthony Andro, we learn that he's nearly back. Hamilton swung the bat at a subjectively-observed 95%, and is looking to return as the designated hitter on Friday. Doing so would give him three games to get geared up before the start of the playoffs.

On Tuesday, Josh Hamilton received a number of injections intended to reduce the pain caused by his fractured ribs. Hamilton reported feeling better on Wednesday, and says he's targeting a return in the final weekend of the regular season.

"I think that's reasonable," he said. "It's still a fast ramp-up, but at the same time, I want to get some at-bats. I'll do what I can. If I feel like anything is making me go backward, I'll stop it."

Hamilton, of course, is a baseball player, and not a doctor, so there's no telling when he'll actually be ready to get back on the field. He sounds positive, though, and the Rangers would be thrilled to see him at any point before the playoffs roll around.

Josh Hamilton may have paid a visit to a back specialist, but the meeting had to do with his front, and the results of his examination are out:

"Josh saw Dr. Robert Watkins this morning out here in CA. Dr. Watkins had given Josh a CT scan and a spec scan yesterday and another CT scan today. He diagnosed a small stable fracture in the 7th and 8th ribs, that previous tests (2 x-rays and an MRI) had not picked up."

The fractures are new information, although they don't necessarily make things that much worse. Hamilton received both epidural injections and anti-inflammatory injections, and all parties will now wait a few days to see if symptoms subside. If Hamilton's pain begins to go away, then he can start thinking about a return to baseball activities. Should it persist, then further treatment will be recommended.

You can take this as good news, bad news, or non-news, but there's an update to the Josh Hamilton situation:

There's no word just yet what this means, and whether it's related to Hamilton's bruised ribs or something else. We should know shortly what's going on. It's worth noting that, in addition to his ribs, Hamilton has battled back and knee problems for much of the season.

Josh Hamilton didn't respond very well to last week's cortisone shots, an attempt to treat his bruised ribs. However, he did note some improvement on Sunday after two weeks of frustration:

"It feels a little better today," Hamilton said. "It feels better as far as everyday stuff like rolling over in bed and getting out of bed. This is the first day since I ran and swung a little bit [on Tuesday] that I've started feeling better."

And when asked whether the Rangers are preparing for a playoff series without Josh Hamilton in the lineup, Ron Washington said the following:

"No," Washington said. "Exclamation point. Exclamation point. Exclamation point."

The hope, on the Rangers' part, is that Hamilton is able to get back in time to play a few games before the end of the regular season in order to shake off some rust. Whether he's able to do that, though, is up in the air, as Hamilton has already experienced a few setbacks and hasn't progressed as hoped. The only thing that's certain is that Hamilton will not be rushed, as the Rangers have little to play for over the coming two weeks.