Astros' DeShields suffers cheek fracture

The good news is it could have been much worse. The bad news is it'll still keep Delino DeShields off the field for awhile.

The Astros' No. 7 prospect was hit in the face by a pitch while batting for Double-A Corpus Christi on Friday. He suffered a broken cheekbone as a result and is expected to be out "several weeks," according to MLB.com's Brian McTaggart.

The organization is officially calling the injury a "non-displaced maxillary sinus fracture" in the left cheek, and although no immediate timetable has been established for DeShields' return, recovery is expected to be lengthy.

"He's lucky, considering," Hooks manager Keith Bodie told MLB.com. "It could have been horrific, could have been catastrophic. He never saw the ball out of the pitcher's hand and took a 90-mph fastball right in the face. You can imagine how lucky we are that he's only got a fracture of his cheekbone. His head looks like a beach ball right now."

DeShields, who is the son of the former Major Leaguer and Double-A Pensacola manager with the same name, was released from a Frisco-area hospital early Saturday morning and was back with the team for the night. He is expected to be further evaluated Saturday.

The 21-year-old center fielder tweeted Saturday afternoon, "To anyone that is concerned as you can see I'm doing fantastic! Blessed to see another day! Always smiling lol" and included a picture of his swollen cheek. (The tweet and picture can be seen here, for the non-faint of heart.)

DeShields had put up a .259/.385/.426 slash line with two homers, three doubles, four RBIs and six stolen bases in 14 games in the Texas League. He was playing in his first full season as a center fielder after the Astros moved him to second base upon taking him in the first round of the 2010 Draft.