Tampa Bay’s two-time defending Gold Glove center fielder leaves game with hip injury.
Kevin Kiermaier attempted to beat a throw to first and ended up making an awkward slide that took him out of the game.
In the fifth inning, Kiermaier was tagged out at first base. After going 1-for-3 with an RBI earlier, he attempted to slide in ahead of the throw, and jammed his right leg into the pad, causing him to roll around in foul territory in pain for a moment. The Rays training staff immediately came out to check on him and ultimately had to assist him off the field.
In the seventh, the exact injury was announced and it was said that Kiermaier was currently being evaluated further.
Kevin Kiermaier left tonight’s game with a jammed right hip. He is being evaluated and we’ll provide further info as it is available. pic.twitter.com/9aHBW4G9Ng
— Tampa Bay Rays (@RaysBaseball) June 9, 2017
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To start off the sixth, Peter Bourjos moved from right to center field, and Colby Rasmus was pulled in to replace Kiermaier in the line-up. With Bourjos coming off the disabled list just this afternoon, it is possible that he could be seeing a lot more game time if Kiermaier is out for any length of time.
With his first at-bat in the eighth, Rasmus hit a home run that just stayed fair to add to the Rays lead. For the Rays, the insurance run came in the same inning the White Sox put two up, bringing the lead down to one.
