Ahead of the Pittsburgh Pirates' National League pennant race against the champion Los Angeles Dodgers, they'll have to compete without shortstop Xander Bogaerts. After Bogaerts suffered a scary shoulder injury recently, he sustained a left foot injury, which will spell the end of his regular season.
However, the Padres are hopeful Bogaerts will return ahead of the MLB postseason, per USA Today's Bob Nightengale.
“Tough news for the San Diego Padres who will be without shortstop Xander Bogaerts for the rest of the regular season with a non-displaced fracture in his left foot. It's possible he could return for the postseason,” Nightengale reported.
Shortly after Bogaerts' injury was announced, the Padres released an official statement, saying their starting shortstop will be placed on the 10-day injury list on the team's X, formerly Twitter.
“We have placed SS Xander Bogaerts on the 10-day IL with a non-displaced fracture in his left foot and recalled INF Mason McCoy from Triple-A El Paso,” the Padres stated.
The Padres trail the Dodgers by 2.0 games in the NL West division.
Manager Mike Shildt ‘thrilled' amid Padres' pennant race
After the Dodgers' three-game sweep, manager Mike Shildt commended the Padres for beating the Dodgers two out of three tries last week. Keeping themselves in the race, the Padres nearly returned the favor for being on the wrong end of a sweep one week prior. However, they have dropped two of their last three outings, including a 4-3 nailbitter against the Mariners after a 7-8 win on Tuesday.
The Padres will hit the road for a three-game series against the Twins, which begins Friday night. However, the Padres will have to compete without their starting shortstop Xander Bogaerts for the foreseeable future. He's been placed on the 10-day IL, but with the postseason around the corner, he could be ruled out longer.
