Boston Red Sox first baseman Willson Contreras was hit in the hand by a pitch on Thursday and exited the game early.
Contreras has been hit by a pitch 24 times this year, ranking third in all of baseball. He has been known for getting hit a lot throughout his career, but this year marks a new career best. Obviously, it's not a fun experience, and Contreras is getting kind of tired of it.
"A lot of people might say that I hit on top of the plate, but I’m seeing a lot of players hit on top of the plate. They don’t get hit like me,” Contreras said after the game, per The Boston Globe's Tim Healey. “It’s really frustrating because I just came back from the IL (because of a hamstring strain), and this might take days. I mean, sore bones in the hands — might take two days, might take a week, might take 10 days."
The most frustrating part is that the Red Sox don't have much runway left for him to heal. The regular season is almost over, and the Red Sox will need Contreras in the wild card round.
X-rays were negative for Contreras, according to Chad Tracy, but as fans have seen this year, that does not mean he is in the clear. He will likely get additional imaging done.
“It felt like a fracture,” Contreras said. “I’m just frustrated.”