The MVP of the Boston Red Sox this season has been Kevin Youkilis, so you can bet that all of Red Sox Nation was holding its breath on Wednesday night when Youk was hit in the hand by a first-inning pitch and eventually left the game against the Royals.
Thankfully for Boston, Youkilis’ hand is bruised, not broken. The team is off on Thursday, but there is a “decent chance” that he could be back in the lineup for Friday night’s game in Chicago.
“It’s swollen like hell; it’s bruised up,” said Youkilis.
Youkilis (.319, 20 HRs, 76 RBIs) originally stayed in the game and took first base. But once the Red Sox came out for defense in the bottom of the inning, Sean Casey took over for Youkilis at first base.
"A pretty good bruise," manager Terry Francona said. "The good news is that there's no break. By the time I got out there, it was already turning black. I think the trainers think there's a decent chance he'll play (Friday). So that's good news. It sounds like it's a matter of a day or two, as opposed to something that looked like it had a chance to be bad."
It was the ninth time this season Youkilis has been hit by a pitch. Even though he left the game, his 12-game hitting streak remains alive because he was hit by a pitch, which does not count as a plate appearance. In the five games before Wednesday, Youkilis was on a tear, hitting .435 (10-for-23) with three doubles, two homers and six RBIs.Francona says he plans to keep Youkilis at cleanup or fifth rather than batting second, where he had primarily hit since David Ortiz's return on July 25.
"We're trying to get this lineup as elongated as we can," Francona said. "I like right now the way Youk [is hitting]. Youk has been a pretty legitimate bat right in the middle of that order. We're just trying to, again, have some depth and some balance."
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