Detroit Tigers second baseman Ian Kinsler may not have emerged entirely unscathed after staying in the game following a pitch to the helmet on Sunday.
According to a report by Jason Beck of MLB.com, Kinsler was showing concussion symptoms after the 9-5 victory over the Cleveland Indians.
The four-time All-Star took a 90-mph Trevor Bauer fastball to the dome in the third inning, but remained in the contest before being ejected by home-plate umpire Jordan Baker in the fifth inning.
Dan and Jim react to Ian Kinsler HBP pic.twitter.com/ZWjseLokg5
— suprnintendo chalmrs (@helmerroids) September 18, 2016
Kinsler was said to have passed an initial concussion exam administered by the team trainer, but was feeling worse by the time of his ejection.
“After the game, he was a little dizzy,” Tigers manager Brad Ausmus said of Kinsler. “He certainly has some symptoms of a concussion.”
“If [trainer] Kevin [Rand] thought there was an indication that a concussion was there, we would have taken him out immediately,” Ausmus went on. “Initially, he didn’t seem to have one.”
The 34-year-old is slashing .278/.335/.471 with 26 home runs and 78 RBIs on the year. The 79-70 Tigers are currently in a make-or-break stretch, sitting two games out of a Wild Card spot with 13 games left to in the regular season. They obviously need all their key contributors to be out there, but concussion protocol could force Kinsler out of the lineup for at least a few days.
H/T HardballTalk
