The Atlanta Braves have been absolutely rolling but their Monday clash with the Tigers saw slugger Marcell Ozuna leave the game after a HBP.
Injuries are nothing new to the Atlanta Braves this season. The club is still without Max Fried and Kyle Wright, both of whom sit on the 60-day IL, but they've also seen the likes of Travis d'Arnaud, Michael Harris II and Orlando Arcia, among others, all miss time this season. Yet, they maintain the best record in the NL and the lead in the division pretty handily.
On Monday against the Tigers in the opener of the series in Detroit, though, they may have suffered an injury that could be even more devastating — which is shocking to say given where we were with Marcell Ozuna at the end of April.
After lacing a double in his first at-bat against the Tigers, Ozuna saw a pitch run in on him and hit him in the hands. He was clearly in quite a bit of pain and, as manager Brian Snitker and trainers came out to check on him, he was having trouble gripping well, even struggling to take off his protective gear. He stayed in to run the bases, but was then pulled from the game after going back to the clubhouse as the DH.
Marcell Ozuna injury update: Braves slugger leaves after HBP to hand
As noted by David O'Brien of The Athletic, though we know that Ozuna was forced to leave the game, the Braves have not yet issued a statement on what the injury is being treated as right now.
Having said that, we've seen numerous players throughout baseball this season end up on the IL in similar scenarioes with pitches running in and hitting hitters on the hand. Moreover, we've seen Ozuna miss time with this type of hand/wrist injury previously in Atlanta.
After a dismal April performance, many Braves fans would've been something close to thankful to see Ozuna get removed from the lineup as he was hitting below .100 on the season and was basically an easy out. That has since changed, though. Since May 2, Ozuna has been raking with a 1.021 OPS, 11 home runs and 16 extra-base hits.
It's not an overstatement to say that he's been one of the best hitters in the Braves lineup. And with the pitching uncertainty that injuries have already bred — even if Atlanta has been able to survive it — losing a bat as hot as Ozuna's could be tough to contend with.
We will update you on any further information regarding the injury but any worry about Ozuna leaving and what it could mean if it's a substantial absence for the veteran DH is certainly warranted.
