DETROIT (Reuters) - American League Most Valuable Player contender Miguel Cabrera of the Detroit Tigers will miss the final six games of the season with an ankle sprain, the team said Wednesday.
An exam Tuesday revealed no major structural damage, but Cabrera's ailing right ankle will not heal before the Tigers' season ends Sunday, the team said on its website (http://detroit.tigers.mlb.com).
Cabrera, the Tigers' first baseman, currently leads the majors with 126 runs batted in but could be passed in the final days of the season.
New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez has 121, and Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Jose Bautista has 119.
Cabrera is tied for second in the AL with 38 home runs and ranks third with a .328 batting average.
He turned the ankle while stepping awkwardly on first base during a pickoff play Monday against the Cleveland Indians.
(Reporting by Gene Cherry in Salvo, North Carolina; Editing by Steve Ginsburg)
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