The New York Yankees suffered a seemingly devastating blow when starting shortstop Gleyber Torres left the game with the supposed elbow injury. After being plunked in the right elbow by a pitch, Torres went down in severe pain.
He ended up staying in the game and subsequently left a little while later in the sixth inning. Tyler Wade took over at shortstop and the Yankees sent Torres to get x-rays to determine the severity of his injury.
INF Gleyber Torres (hit by a pitch in the top of the first inning and substituted defensively when the Yankees took the field in the bottom of the fourth) was removed from the game with a right elbow contusion. X-rays taken at Oriole Park at Camden Yards were negative.
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) July 31, 2020
Luckily, by the grace of the baseball gods, Torres was cleared of any significant damage. The worst case would have been a chipped bone, but it seems he will just have a nasty bruise as a consequence of being hit.
Torres was one of three Yankees that were struck by pitches on Thursday evening against Baltimore. Aaron Judge was hit twice and Gary Sanchez was hit in the hand. When Torres was hit, he was in the process of swinging and his elbow hovered over the plate for a second too long.
Losing the starting infielder would be devastating for the Yankees, who rely on him to be there number three hitter in the order and play at the most important position on defense. While Torres has struggled to throw the ball at times and short-hopped a few attempts, he is the future of the franchise along with Aaron Judge and is the epitome of being a Bronx Bomber.
With Gleyber been cleared, we should expect him to return to the lineup on Friday, if not on Saturday against the Boston Red Sox.