Sporting KC midfielder Roger Espinoza out 2-4 weeks with right ankle sprain

Sporting Kansas City midfielder Roger Espinoza suffered a right anterior medial ankle sprain on Sunday and is expected to miss two to four weeks, the club announced today.

Espinoza, 25, sustained the injury in second-half stoppage time of Sporting Kansas City's 1-1 draw at the Columbus Crew yesterday.

Following an MRI and X-rays taken in Columbus earlier today, Espinoza will return to Kansas City for additional evaluation and treatment.

Due to the injury, Espinoza will not join Honduras for the team's upcoming FIFA World Cup Qualifiers against Panama on Oct. 12 and Canada on Oct. 16.

Espinoza, in his fifth professional season after being taken in the first round of the 2008 MLS SuperDraft out of Ohio State University, has played a career-high 26 games this season and has 118 appearances in MLS competition (including playoffs) in his career.

He represented Honduras at the 2012 Olympic Games in London this summer and was a member of the country's 2010 FIFA World Cup team in South Africa.

Sporting Kansas City, in first place in the Eastern Conference, has two games remaining in the regular season: Oct. 20 at the New York Red Bulls and Oct. 24 versus the Philadelphia Union at LIVESTRONG Sporting Park.

The team has secured a berth in the 2012 MLS Cup Playoffs and Espinoza is expected to return in time for postseason competition.