Atlanta – Two innings after Casey Mize left the game with a right groin strain Tuesday, Javier Báez appeared to injure himself on an awkward slide into first base.
He couldn’t put pressure on his right leg and was taken off the field on a cart.
With Hao-Yu Lee on first after leading off the top of the fifth with a double, Báez hit a ground ball to shortstop. Mauricio Dubon’s throw was high and Báez tried to slide underneath the tag of first baseman Matt Olson.
It looked like his left foot hit the bag hard and his right ankle rolled when his body rolled.
Wenceel Perez entered the game in right field and Matt Vierling moved from right to center to replace Báez.
Tigers at Braves
First pitch: 7:15 p.m. Wednesday, Truist Park, Atlanta
TV/radio: Detroit Sports Net, 97.1.
Scouting report
LHP Tarik Skubal (3-2, 2.72), Tigers: It’s too soon to make any binding judgments about this, it’s just peculiar. Skubal comes out in no-hit mode just about every start: 11 straight outs against the Brewers, no-hitter through four at Boston, no-hitter through 5.2 innings against the Marlins, four scoreless at Minnesota. But the back end of starts have been rougher. Opponents third time seeing Skubal are hitting .433 with a 1.104 OPS. Hitters seeing him on pitches 76-100 have an OPS of 1.095. His career numbers (.676 OPS third time through, .637 after 76 pitches) suggests this is an anomaly.
RHP JR Ritchie (1-0, 2.57), Braves: The 22-year-old first-round pick in 2022, had an impactful Major League debut Thursday, limiting the Nationals to two runs (two solo homers) with seven strikeouts over seven innings. Against a lefty-heavy lineup, he effectively used a slow curveball off a 94-mph four-seam fastball. He also has a changeup, slider, cutter and sinker in his took lit. He had allowed just three earned runs in 27.1 innings at Triple-A Gwinnett before getting called up.
Chris.McCosky@detroitnews.com
@cmccosky
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Tigers’ Javier Báez carted off field with injury against Braves
Reporting by Chris McCosky, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
