Pirates second baseman Neil Walker dislocated his right pinky finger while trying to turn a double play in the first inning of Wednesday night's 9-3 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers. He fielded a ground ball up the middle by Matt Kemp, ranging to his right, then went back to tag second before throwing on to first. Walker fell as Mark Ellis slid into second, and appeared to injure the finger when he fell.

Walker, who has had a dislocated finger before, is "optimistic" that he'll be back soon.

"I’m going to see a hand specialist (Thursday)," Walker said. "Fortunately there’s no break. … I couldn’t put a number on it, but I’m very optimistic about a quick return."

The Pirates are struggling to stay afloat and can scarcely afford to lose Walker, one of their better hitters, for an extended period of time.

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