Boston’s Turner takes fastball to face
Boston Red Sox infielder Justin Turner needed 16 stitches after he was hit in the face by a pitch in Monday’s game against the Detroit Tigers in Fort Myers, Fla.
The 38-year-old fell to the ground after getting hit by a fastball from 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 on 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.” . . .
Chris Sale pitched two scoreless innings for Boston 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 during his first outing of spring training.
“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 openminded. I’m trying to kind of soak some things in and really appreciate it.”
Sale was one of baseball’s most dominant pitchers during the 2010s but has thrown just 481/
3 innings since 2019. He missed the 2020 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery and then had a variety of injuries last season — including from a bike accident — that kept him off the mound.
ROCKIES: Reliever Brad Hand is guaranteed $2 million in his one-year contract with Colorado, and the three-time all-star would make $11.5 million over two years if he starts this season in the major leagues and pitches at least 60 games annually.
The left-hander, who turns 33 on March 20, has a $1.5 million salary this year as part of a deal announced Saturday. The contract includes a $7 million team option for 2024 with a $500,000 buyout.
The option would become a mutual option if Hand finishes at least 25 games this year or is traded. His 2023 salary would escalate to $2.5 million if he is on the Opening Day roster, the 15-day injured list or the 60-day injured list.
METS: New York left-hander José Quintana has a small stress fracture on his fifth rib on the left side, the team said. He’s headed back to New York for further evaluation.
CARDINALS: St. Louis right-hander Jack Flaherty pitched three innings against Houston in his first spring training appearance, giving up one run, walking one and striking out five. Flaherty’s outing was pushed back a day because of calf tightness.
BRAVES: Atlanta plans to stop the sale of season tickets to preserve the availability of singlegame tickets. Braves President Derek Schiller said this is the first time in team history that season ticket sales have been cut off before the first game.
The Braves plan to cut off the sale of season tickets on or around March 17. The team said it is on pace to approach the 2022 Truist Park attendance record of more than 3.1 million; that was the first time since 2020 at Turner Field that the Braves topped 3 million.
The Braves finished fourth in the major leagues last season with their average of 38,461 fans at Truist Park.