Toronto shortstop Troy Tulowitzki suffered a small crack in his shoulder blade among other injuries Saturday against the Yankees.
It’s unclear how long Tulowitzki will be out, or even if he will be back this year. But considering how important he had been to the Blue Jays since he arrived just before the trade deadline — they’re 30-8 when he starts — what is clear is he will be missed.
“Tough news. You look at what the guy’s done for us, when he’s in the field every day our record is what it is. It’s tough,’’ Toronto manager John Gibbons said.
“It’s definitely a tough blow for us, the best shortstop in the game. You don’t lose him and get better,’’ said Cliff Pennington, who replaced Tulowitzki in the first game and started at second in the nightcap.
Tulowitzki was forced out of action in the second inning of the first game of Toronto’s doubleheader sweep. He was backpedaling to catch Didi Gregorius’ popup when center-fielder Kevin Pillar plowed into his back.
“I couldn’t feel any worse about it. It’s probably the worst thing I’ve ever experienced on a field,’’ Pillar said. “I’ve been injured on a field, but to injure someone else is a nightmare you never want to have happen on a field, especially a guy like him, who’s so important to this team, and on a play where it easily could’ve been avoided.’’
But it wasn’t avoided, and after X-rays on Tulowitzki’s ribs and chest turned up negative, a subsequent MRI exam revealed a cracked scapula and upper-back muscle bruises. He is out indefinitely, and his progress will be monitored next week to determine a timeline for his return.
“It’s not good news,” Gibbons said. “We’ll probably have a little better idea in a few days about how long they think it might be. Kind of a freak thing. It’s unfortunate. It means a couple other guys get a chance to step up. When he had the ball he went right down. You could tell it wasn’t natural.’’
Tulowitzki, 30, has a long injury history that has limited him to playing just an average of 88 games for the past three seasons. He is hitting .279 with 17 homers and 70 RBIs this year between Colorado and Toronto, while his replacement Pennington came into the day hitting 2-for-29.
Granted, Pennington — who came on to play second while Ryan Goins slid over to short — acquitted himself well. He went 1-for-3 with a run scored in the first game and 1-for-4 with a walk, two runs scored and a two-run homer in the second. He even robbed Gregorius of a based-loaded hit in the eighth inning of the first game.
But with a career OPS of .656 compared with Tulowitzki’s .877, it’s a huge loss.
“I’ve just got to go out and try to help the team win. The only thing that matters right now is W’s and L’s,’’ Pennington said. “Losing Tulo for however long we’re losing him is a big blow, but this game’s not going to stop. We’ve got to keep going.’’