MINNEAPOLIS -- The already injury-depleted Twins outfield took another hit in the fifth inning of Tuesday's 9-4 win over the Rays, when Max Kepler was removed after he was hit by a pitch in the right elbow area.

Kepler sustained a right elbow contusion, the Twins announced. X-rays were negative, and Kepler will have an MRI on Wednesday, manager Rocco Baldelli said.

“He’s got some swelling, but it looks like we’re going to be OK,” Baldelli said. “It’s in a spot that probably maybe looks a little worse than it is. Obviously, he’s going to be uncomfortable for a little while and have to work through this, but the initial testing came back with nothing overly serious.”

With the Twins leading, 7-0, Kepler couldn’t get out of the way of an 0-2 fastball from Rays reliever Hunter Wood, and it appeared to catch him on the right arm, just above his elbow. Kepler immediately threw his bat away and doubled over in pain as he was examined by Baldelli and head athletic trainer Tony Leo before he exited and was replaced by pinch-runner Jake Cave.

Kepler had been playing center field because Byron Buxton was still on the 10-day injured list after he was also hit by a pitch in the right wrist area on June 14 and sustained a contusion. Two of the Twins’ other outfield options are also sidelined at the moment, as Marwin Gonzalez (right hamstring strain) and Ehire Adrianza (abdominal issues) are both on the injured list.

The 26-year-old Kepler entered the game hitting .274/.351/.551 and had been second on the team with 19 homers. His 2.7 WAR, per FanGraphs, had been second among American League outfielders entering Tuesday’s game, trailing only Mike Trout.