Detroit Tigers left fielder Robbie Grossman departed from Thursday’s game vs. the Boston Red Sox after being hit by a pitch.
Grossman was struck near his left elbow with a 90 mph cutter from Red Sox starter Martin Perez in the second inning. Athletic trainer Doug Teter and manager AJ Hinch jumped out of the dugout to check on him. They talked with Grossman, and he stayed in the game to run the bases.
But Grossman, 31, did not return to the outfield for the third inning. He exited with a left elbow contusion, and rookie Akil Baddoo took over for him in left field.
“All things checked out via the doctor,” Hinch said after his team’s 8-1 win at Comerica Park. “He’s going to be really sore. I’ve got to check with him to see if tomorrow is a good day (to play). I was thinking about Saturday off for him anyway, so we’ll see. He’s day-to-day, but I took him out because he was uncomfortable.”
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In the first inning, Grossman smacked a leadoff home run for a 1-0 lead. He did his damage on Perez’s 0-2 fastball. He has a .235 batting average, 17 home runs, 51 RBIs, 72 walks and 105 strikeouts over 106 games this season.
Perez ran into more trouble in the second, as the Tigers went ahead 3-0. After Perez plunked Grossman, Red Sox manager Alex Cora replaced his left-handed starter with righty reliever Phillips Valdez. Perez allowed three runs on five hits over 1⅓ innings, throwing 25 of 37 pitches for strikes.
Grossman has three leadoff home runs in 2021.
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Evan Petzold is a sports reporter at the Detroit Free Press. Contact him at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him on Twitter @EvanPetzold. Read more on the Detroit Tigers and sign up for our Tigers newsletter.