Chicago Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo was removed from Sunday's game against the Pittsburgh Pirates after suffering an apparent ankle injury:

https://twitter.com/Cubs_Live/status/1173312598227505157

Rizzo twisted his ankle in the turf after going to field a sacrifice bunt off the bat of Pirates pitcher Trevor Williams, and he had to be helped off the field.

The official diagnosis is a sprain, but this would be a huge blow to the Cubs should Rizzo be forced to miss an extended period of time:

The Cubs are clinging to a one-game lead for the second Wild Card spot in the National League, and they are already without star shortstop Javier Baez for the remainder of the season. Though Nicholas Castellanos continues to rake and rookie Nico Hoerner has been sensational since being called up to the big-league level, Rizzo has been invaluable at the top of Chicago's lineup.

Rizzo was just installed as the leadoff man prior to the start of Chicago's series against the Pirates, and he led off each of the first three games by getting on base. Chicago has not had a reliable threat at the top of the order all season long, and Rizzo's presence helped spark an offense that scored 31 runs over the course of the last two games.

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The 30-year-old from Fort Lauderdale, FL was slashing .289/.402/.516 entering Sunday's contest, and he ranked second on the team in OPS (.918) while leading the Cubs with 93 RBI.

Rizzo was the centerpiece of Chicago's rebuild that began in 2012, and he has been one of the most productive hitters in franchise history ever since.

With seven games remaining against the St. Louis Cardinals (who lead the NL Central), the Cubs will hope that Rizzo can return to action before the conclusion of the regular season.