New York Yankees first baseman Anthony Rizzo sustained a fractured finger on his right hand during Saturday’s 9-4 loss to the visiting Pittsburgh Pirates.
Rizzo was plunked on the hand by Ryan Borucki in the seventh inning. He was examined by a trainer and initially remained in the game before being replaced on defense in the top of the eighth.
New York manager Aaron Boone was in wait-and-see mode per Rizzo’s availability for the team’s first postseason series, which would begin on Oct. 5.
“We’ll see what we have as the week moves forward,” Boone said postgame. “It doesn’t totally rule him out. It’s a pain tolerance thing.”
Rizzo, 35, returned to the Yankees on Sept. 1 after being sidelined for 2 1/2 months with a fractured right forearm.
Rizzo is batting .228 with eight homers and 35 RBIs in 92 games this season. He was a three-time All-Star for the Chicago Cubs earlier in his career. Rizzo has 303 career homers over 14 seasons.
Boone agreed it would be a big loss if Rizzo were to be sidelined for an extended period.
“No question. He’s come back and done a really good job for us,” Boone said. “Obviously, kind of helps anchor our defense and I feel he’s been getting us good at-bats at the bottom of the order.”
Boone said Oswaldo Cabrera and rookie Ben Rice are candidates to play first base while Rizzo is out.
–Field Level Media