Monday afternoon wasn’t an entirely pleasant day at the ballpark for the Red Sox.
Boston received an encouraging outing from Chris Sale in his spring training debut, but most of the focus was on Justin Turner. The veteran infielder left JetBlue Park after one pitch against the Detroit Tigers, whose starting pitcher drilled Turner in the face. Matt Manning’s fastball left Turner a bloody mess and he needed to be taken to a local hospital for further evaluations.
The scary scene did a number on Red Sox first baseman Triston Casas.
“Yeah, I was distraught for like, the first two innings honestly,” Casas told reporters, per MLB.com. “As a baseball player, that’s your biggest fear, for sure, running into a pitch like that coming up and in. It’s a scary sight. And, it was like, hard drop, just like a pit-in-my-stomach feeling.”
Casas added: “I’ve gotten pretty close to him, being around him a lot, just trying to pick his brain. I know he’s got a lot of experience. So hopefully he makes a speedy recovery.”
Fortunately for Turner and the Red Sox, it doesn’t sound like a lengthy recovery will be necessary. Turner’s wife, Kourtney, revealed the two-time All-Star needed 16 stitches to patch the laceration, but he didn’t suffer any facial fractures and all of his scans came up clear.
Given this positive update, Turner seemingly should be ready to go March 30 when the Red Sox kick off their regular-season schedule against the Baltimore Orioles at Fenway Park.
