The Chicago Cubs have placed outfielder Cody Bellinger on the 10-day injured list after fracturing his left middle finger.
Bellinger was hit by Cionel Pérez’s pitch in the seventh inning of Wednesday’s 4-0 victory over the Orioles. He stayed in the game at first, but had to depart shortly after.
It is unclear how long Bellinger will be out of action.
“He won’t be doing much until after the All-Star break, and then we’ll start rehabbing his finger’s range of motion,” manager Craig Counsell said on Thursday. “We’ll see how that goes.”
Bellinger’s batting average is.269, with nine home runs and 37 RBIs.
Losing Bellinger is a significant setback for the Cubs, who had won five of their previous six games into Thursday’s series finale against Baltimore.
“He’s our number three hitter, so losing him is a blow,” Counsell remarked. “You cannot easily replace someone like that. We’ll have to band together while he’s away and try to maintain the strong offensive play we’ve seen recently.”
To replace Bellinger on the roster, Chicago has brought up outfielder Alexander Canario from Triple-A Iowa. Canario has appeared in thirteen games for the Cubs this season.
