Ole Miss OF Ethan Lege Out With Fractured Thumb, Will He Return For Regular Season?

Ole Miss baseball could be without its best player for the remainder of the regular season.

Ethan Lege, the Rebels' star outfielder through 44 games, suffered a fractured thumb last week, Ole Miss coach Mike Bianco confirmed Friday evening. Lege didn't play in the Rebels' 11-7 road victory over Auburn that opened a three-game series.

Lege won't suit up on Saturday or Sunday either against the Tigers, but the longtime coach is leaving the door open for a return down the line.

"He's a tough kid, he wants to play," Bianco said. "It's too soon from the injury. The hand's swollen, the thumb's still really swollen. The hope is once the swelling goes down he might be able to swing with some type of splint or brace on there."

According to Bianco, the fracture won't improve or worsen should Lege play, but the Rebels are playing this one closer to the vest. Should Ole Miss go on a run through the SEC Tournament later this month, it needs to be well equipped to do battle in the NCCA Tournament.

The best way to achieve that is with Lege, who currently leads the team with a .323 batting average and 13 home runs. He also has a Rebels-leading 1.069 OPS.

Bianco said once the swelling goes down, it'll be up to pain tolerance. Perhaps Ole Miss slowly works Lege back in with some pinch-hit at-bat during the midweek showdowns, but it won't come on Saturday or in Sunday's finale

"He's just not going to be able to do it this weekend," Bianco said.

The Rebels (24-21, 8-16 SEC) close out the regular season with a three-game series against No. 1 Texas A&M at home before traveling to Baton Rouge for a three-game matchup against LSU. Ole Miss will also face Murray State and Southern Miss as midweek matchups on May 8 and May 14, respectively.