Anthony Rizzo was trying to work through a brutal slump but now he has landed on the injured list.
The New York Yankees’ veteran first baseman could be sidelined between four and six weeks after suffering a fractured right arm, as first reported by The Athletic. Rizzo suffered the injury during the seventh inning of Sunday night’s 9-3 loss at Fenway Park when he tried to evade Boston Red Sox pitcher Brennan Bernardino, who was trying to cover first base while receiving a throw that sailed behind him from Dominic Smith. While minimal contact appeared to be made, Rizzo’s leaping evasion led to him falling where the injury appeared to be sustained.
He immediately exited the game showing severe discomfort, though initial tests at Fenway Park came up negative. However, Rizzo received further testing on Monday in New York that revealed the extent of the injury.
“You don’t see that from Rizz,” Yankees slugger Aaron Judge said of his teammate showing that he was hurt, indicating the severity of things. “Usually he leads Major League Baseball in hit-by-pitches, so he’s good with dealing with pain. He’s tough.”
His toughness, both physically and mentally, has been put to the test over the past year. The Yankees misdiagnosed a concussion that he suffered last season in May after he collided with San Diego Padres star Fernando Tatis Jr. Yet he was not put on the injured list until August — he played roughly 10 weeks with concussion symptoms — before getting shut down completely one month later in September.
Issues at the plate stemming from last season while he played with a head injury have carried into this season. Rizzo had gone 5-for-his-last-48 (.104) in June. He is batting .223 with a .630 OPS, eight home runs, and 28 RBI this season.
As first reported by Joel Sherman of the New York Post on Tuesday, the Yankees will be calling up Ben Rice — the organization’s No. 12 ranked prospect who can play both catcher and first base. The 25-year-old started the season in Double-A but has since been promoted to Triple-A, batting .275 with a .925 OPS, 15 home runs, and 36 RBI in 60 games across both levels.
