Mookie Betts Shoulder Injury Diagnosed as Contusion, Exits vs. Rangers

Boston Red Sox star Mookie Betts left Sunday's game against the Texas Rangers with what was described as a right shoulder contusion, according to Ian Browne of MLB.com.

He is reportedly day-to-day with the injury.

Betts was replaced by Blake Swihart in the second inning after going 1-for-2 with a run to start the game.

The 25-year-old outfielder has done a good job of staying available early in his career. Even with a trip to the disabled list (concussion) in 2015, he averaged 152 games in his first three full seasons in the big leagues. He was, however, banged up earlier this season in a home plate collision, suffering a left foot contusion.

Betts has received American League MVP votes in each of the past three seasons—including a runner-up finish in 2016—while making two All-Star teams and winning two Gold Gloves and a Silver Slugger. In other words, he has wasted no time in becoming one of the best players in baseball.

He has been even better this year while hitting .355/.434/.818 with a league-high 13 home runs and 36 runs.

At 24-9, Boston entered the day holding a one-game lead in the AL East. Betts' strong play has led the franchise to the postseason in each of the past two years, with hopes of continuing the streak in 2018.

There's no denying that losing Betts for any period of time would be a tough blow for any team. However, the Red Sox may be able to weather the storm as they have J.D. Martinez, Jackie Bradley Jr. and Andrew Benintendi on their outfield depth chart.

Playing without Betts means the team will be missing a variety of things: average, power, speed and defense. There's a reason he has been in the MVP conversation on an annual basis—he can do it all. Now, the pressure will be on Martinez and Co. to fill the void.