Robert day-to-day with left hand injury
Luis Robert's blazing start to the season hit a snag Saturday.The fourth-ranked White Sox prospect departed in the third inning of Class A Advanced Winston-Salem's twinbill nightcap against Potomac with soreness in his left hand. According to MLB.com, Robert is day-to-day with a contusion.
The fourth-ranked White Sox prospect departed in the third inning of Class A Advanced Winston-Salem's twinbill nightcap against Potomac with soreness in his left hand. According to MLB.com, Robert is day-to-day with a contusion.
After going 1-for-2 with a walk, RBI and stolen base while patrolling center field in Game 1 on Saturday, the 21-year-old returned to the leadoff spot in the lineup for Game 2 as designated hitter and grounded out to short on the first pitch from right-hander
MLB.com's No. 37 overall prospect was off to a red-hot start this year, leading the Carolina League in average (.475), on-base percentage (.530), slugging percentage (.915), OPS (1.446), hits (28), extra-base hits (12), home runs (6), total bases (54) and runs (16) and is tied atop the circuit with Potomac's
Robert was coming off his second ever -- and the season's first -- Player of the Week award.
The Cuba native has dealt with injuries a few times in his career. Last season, he was limited to 50 games and 186 at-bats when, after hitting a grand slam in his first Spring Training start, Robert injured his left thumb on March 7 and didn't make his regular-season debut until June 5 with Class A Kannapolis. The 21-year-old made it through 13 games with the Intimidators before being called up to Winston-Salem. Nine games into his time with the Dash, Robert reinjured the thumb and was sidelined for almost four weeks. Following a five-game rehab stint in the Rookie-level Arizona League, Robert returned to the Dash and posted a .244/.317/.309 slash line in 32 games.
But the outfielder's talent was on full display in big league Spring Training this year, batting .313/.313/.813 with a dinger, a pair of triples, a double and eight RBIs over eight games. He brought that momentum into the season and made a huge splash on Opening Night, delivering the first multi-homer game of his career as well as a personal-best five RBIs to propel Winston-Salem to a 9-4 victory in Frederick.
Entering Saturday's nightcap, Robert was in the midst of an eight-game hitting streak -- six of which were multi-hit efforts. He also hit safely in 13 of his first 14 games this season.
Rob Terranova is a contributor to MiLB.com. Follow him on Twitter, @RobTnova24.