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Javier Baez had just started looking like he’d turned a corner after a dismal start to the 2023 season. Now, though, the Detroit Tigers are just hoping he won’t need a stint on the IL:
Javier Báez just took a 93 mph fastball off the left hand. He has left the game with two outs in the first inning. #Tigers
— Evan Petzold (@EvanPetzold) April 26, 2023
That’s the same left hand that Baez injured on a slide last week against the Baltimore Orioles, so it’s certainly worth monitoring — although hopefully this is just a precaution to let the team get some X-rays on the shortstop’s hand.
Baez entered Wednesday riding a rather unlikely 10-game hitting streak in which he was slashing .378/.415/.487, with three walks and, most importantly, just seven strikeouts in 41 plate appearances. He’d raised his OPS from .263 all the way to .571 and was finally looking like the player the Tigers thought they were getting when they handed him a six-year, $140 million deal prior to last season.