Opening Day wasn’t all pomp and circumstance Thursday with injury scares for some of the games best young players.
New York Mets first baseman Pete Alonso
Alonso has left the game after getting hit by a pitch in the top of the ninth inning of the Mets’ 5-1 win over the Washington Nationals.
The New York Post reports “A 94-mph slider from Mason Thompson grazed his shoulder and hit the helmet flap that protects his face. The flap hit him in the mouth, bloodying the first baseman in a scary scene at Nationals Park.”
Rotoworld reports “Alonso told reporters after Thursday’s game that he went through the concussion protocol and tested negative.”
“All good, just a busted lip,” Alonso told reporters. “No missing teeth, no concussion.” The first baseman hit the deck after he was hit first in the shoulder and then in the face by a 95 mph Mason Thompson fastball, and exited the game. It sounds like there’s a great chance Alonso is back in the lineup for Friday, but fantasy managers might want to make sure just in case.
Alonso was 2-for-4 with a run scored before leaving the game.
Pittsburgh Pirates third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes
Shortly after agreeing to an eight-year, $70 million contract with the Pirates, third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes left Thursday’s 9-0 Opening Day loss to the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium in the bottom of the first inning with a left forearm spasm.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports Hayes “insisted it’s unrelated to the injury that bothered him last season. Although he couldn’t get his thumb and the rest of his hand to relax on the field, apparently some time in the hot tub afterwards did the trick.”
“I knew it wasn’t an injury,” Hayes told the Post-Gazette. “I knew it was a cramp. I was trying my best. There were like two or three pitches I didn’t even have my glove on. I was trying my best to get that thing to loosen back up. I just didn’t have the time to do it.”
Per MLB.com, “The Bucs have an off-day Friday, but he expects to play on Saturday and properly start his season with a deal that cements him as a cornerstone.”
Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Mickey Moniak
The Phillies won’t have outfielder Mickey Moniak in the lineup for their season opener Friday against the Oakland A’s.
NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Jim Salisbury reports “Moniak suffered a fracture of his right hand during the team’s final exhibition game Wednesday. ... One source said Moniak would be out six weeks.”
Chicago White Sox third baseman Yoan Moncada
ESPN reports the White Sox placed Moncada on the injured list Thursday with a strained right oblique. He’s expected to miss three weeks. Chicago opens the season Friday at the Detroit Tigers.
MORE MLB:
- Red Sox star says he won’t sign contract extension before Opening Day
- Here’s how Mets legend, SNY analyst Keith Hernandez would change MLB
- Red Sox are psyched for Opening Day vs. Yankees: ‘It’s going to be nuts’
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Mike Rosenstein may be reached at mrosenstein@njadvancemedia.com.
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