Didi (shoulder) day to day after exiting on HBP
LOS ANGELES -- Yankees shortstop Didi Gregorius is considered day to day after sustaining a right shoulder contusion when he was hit by an 89.3-mph fastball from Clayton Kershaw in the first inning of Sunday's 5-1 victory over the Dodgers.
Gregorius was struck in the back of the right shoulder and initially remained in the game, but he was removed for a pinch-hitter when his spot in the batting order came up next in the third inning. Gregorius had X-rays, which were negative, and said that his throwing was being affected.
"I tried to fight it and stay in the game, but they were like, ‘No, we’ve got to take care of it before something else happens,'" Gregorius said.
It is unlikely that Gregorius will play on Monday, when the Yankees open a three-game series with the Mariners in Seattle.
"I think it's a bone bruise, but he's pretty sore," manager Aaron Boone said. "We'll treat it and kind of feel like it's probably a day-to-day thing. We'll see how he's doing [Monday]. Hopefully we avoided something serious."
Gregorius, who is batting .263 with 13 homers and 44 RBIs in 59 games, hit a grand slam and a solo homer in the Yanks' 10-2 rout on Friday. He went hitless in four at-bats during Saturday's 2-1 loss.
Mike Ford entered the lineup in Gregorius' spot and had a night to remember of his own, slugging a sixth-inning homer off Kershaw and adding a run-scoring double in the eighth off Pedro Baez.
"He came in big off Kershaw. That’s a real good pitcher," Gregorius said. "He was ready to go since the beginning. I think that just shows we’re ready to go, whenever the opportunity is."