Carlos Beltran robbed David Ortiz of a grand slam in the second inning of Game 1 of the World Series on Wednesday to save three runs, but the excellent defensive play came at a cost.
The St. Louis Cardinals right fielder was under control when he went back to the wall by the Boston Red Sox bullpen and made the catch over the fence, but he still slammed into the wall hard. He appeared to be in pain after making the catch and was replaced by Jon Jay after the inning.
The Cardinals announced that Beltran left the game with a rib contusion, and he was taken to the hospital. X-rays and a CT scan on his ribs were negative, but Cardinals GM John Mozeliak says Beltran is day-to-day with a severe rib bruise.
We saw Hanley Ramirez suffer a cracked rib for the Los Angeles Dodgers against the Cardinals, and he was never the same. It looks like the same thing will be the case with Beltran. This is a devastating turn for the team. Beltran has been a postseason stud for the team, knocking in 12 runs and posting a .900 OPS while also playing excellent defense. They’re already down 1-0 in the series and it won’t help having Beltran at half-strength the rest of the series.
