Red Sox’s Turner hit in face, avoids serious injury
Judge hits his 1st homer of spring
FORT MYERS, Fla. — Boston Red Sox infielder Justin Turner needed 16 stitches after he was hit in the face by a pitch during Monday’s spring training game against the Detroit Tigers.
The 38-year-old Turner fell to the ground after getting drilled by right-hander Matt Manning. Medical personnel rushed to the plate, and Turner was bleeding and had a towel on his face as he walked off the field.
Turner’s wife, Kourtney, posted to Instagram that the infielder had “16 stitches and a lot of swelling but we are thanking God for no fractures & clear scans.”
“He’s receiving treatment for soft tissue injuries, and is being monitored for a concussion,” the Red Sox said in a statement. “He will undergo further testing, and we’ll update as we have more information. Justin is stable, alert, and in good spirits given the circumstances.”
The two-time All-Star signed a $15 million, one-year deal with Red Sox during the offseason after spending the past nine years with the Los Angeles Dodgers. He hit .278 with 13 homers and 81 RBIs in 128 games last season.
MORE RED SOX: Chris Sale pitched two scoreless innings for the Red Sox as the seven-time All-Star tries to bounce back from three straight injurymarred seasons.
Sale gave up two hits and struck out two against Detroit in his first outing this spring.
“I got it back. I appreciate it more,” Sale told the Boston Globe. “I’m trying to have more fun with it; I’m trying to be more open-minded; I’m trying to kind of soak some things in and really appreciate it.”
Sale was one of the game’s most dominant pitchers throughout the 2010s, but has thrown just 48⅓ innings since 2019. He missed the 2020 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery and then had a variety of injuries last season — including a bike accident — that kept him off the mound.
YANKEES: Aaron Judge hit his first homer of the spring — a three-run shot — on Monday against the Pittsburgh Pirates.
The reigning AL MVP launched a towering, opposite-field drive just over the right-center wall as part of a six-run second inning.
The four-time All-Star broke the American League record with 62 home runs last season.
New York manager Aaron Boone said Judge will play left field on Wednesday, as the Yankees experiment with using their regular right fielder in the other corner on occasion.