SAN DIEGO (AP) — Bryce Harper will be sidelined indefinitely with a broken left thumb after he was hit by a pitch from Blake Snell in the Philadelphia Phillies’
Bryce Harper will be sidelined indefinitely with a broken left thumb after he was hit by a pitch from Blake Snell in the Philadelphia Phillies’ 4-2 victory over the San Diego Padres on Saturday night. The reigning NL MVP checked his swing as the 97-mph fastball from Snell rode inside and high toward his shoulder before hitting him on the outside of the left hand in the fourth inning. Harper immediately fell to the ground and was in visible pain as he held his hand while on his knees for several minutes with Phillies head trainer Paul Buchheit attending to him. Phillies general manager Dave Dombrowski, who traveled with the team on the road trip, said it was too early to determine if surgery will be needed. He added he wasn’t sure what type of fracture Harper had or where on his thumb the injury occurred.
“We will put him on the injured list (Sunday),” Dombrowski said. “I was concerned at first he got hit in the face. I was concerned right off the bat because he is a tough guy and he walked off the field immediately.”
As Harper was halfway to Philadelphia’s dugout, he angrily yelled at Snell and motioned with his hand at the Padres starting pitcher. Snell eventually shouted back at Harper. Many of the fans at Petco Park fans started to boo Harper after several seconds with Harper shouting at Snell.
