Max Muncy was going well this year, hitting .258 and 12 homers till now. However, things came to a sudden halt as he left the field reeling in pain after being hit by a pitch in the right hand/wrist area during the eighth inning. And it came at the wrong time, when the Padres are just one game behind the Dodgers. For the hopefuls, though, Muncy’s honest assessment after the game could pinch harder.

“Well, not feeling great right now, but that is a relief. We just have to monitor the next couple of days, typically, especially in that area,” Muncy said. “The X-rays never come back positive immediately. It kind of forms a little bit, but I’m pretty sure it hit half my wrist pad and then the other half of my wrist. I obviously haven’t looked at it yet, but that’s kind of what I was feeling. It might have saved my wrist at least tonight. It was 98 on the wrist; it hurt really, really bad.”

Now, the guy who took the hit is uncertain about his recent development, and that speaks a lot about his return.

In the 8th inning, Muncy was hit by a 95.5-mph sinker from Aaron Ashby. He yelled in pain the moment the ball hit his wrist, and immediately, he was attended by Dave Roberts and the team’s medical staff. Muncy was visibly in pain and was seen stretching his wrist. He expectedly left the field and didn’t come back again.

The injury could have been far more severe had Muncy not worn those wrist guards. “Me deciding to wear that wrist guard the last couple of years might have saved my wrist, at least tonight,” he said.

While the negative X-ray generated some hopes among the fans, Muncy fears the impact could be far-reaching, considering he was hit in the exact spot before. “I’ve been hit in that spot before, and I’ve broken that spot before,” Muncy said. Reportedly, back in 2019, Muncy suffered a fractured right wrist after being hit by a pitch. That fracture forced him to miss roughly two weeks of the late-season schedule.

The second hit on the same spot doesn’t sound good, and the reason Muncy is fearing. As per him, if the pain develops over time and cracks appear, chances are high that Muncy could lose significant time. He is 35 now, and losing months means a question on his Dodgers future.

For the Dodgers, Muncy’s injury could be the worst to come. This year, he has been the most productive batter for the team. Entering Friday, he led the Dodgers with 12 homers and owned a .258 average, .363 OBP, .515 slugging percentage, .878 OPS, and a 147 wRC+. Moreover, Friday also proved how the Dodgers could struggle due to the absence of Max Muncy.

They went 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position. Nine runners were left stranded. That’s a scary picture of what’s coming next for the team with Muncy nowhere in the dugout for now.

Max Muncy just made the Dodgers’ injury scene scarier

The Dodgers’ headache doesn’t stops with replacing Max Muncy, but it add to their already scary-looking injury list. Currently, the Dodgers have a long list of injuries.

Tommy Edman is currently on the 60-day IL recovering from offseason ankle surgery. He has been running at full strength and is nearing live at-bats and rehab assignments with a target return in June. Kike Hernandez has been on the 60-day IL recovering from a February elbow surgery. He is completing a rehab assignment in Triple-A and is eligible to be activated.

And the worst part is Shohei Ohtani and Will Smith’s cold stretch. Ohtani managed to sceore 8 homers till now while Smith is hitting .246.

Now, if Muncy is out for a long, the Dodgers need to shake up their lineup and we can expect a few promotions from the minors. Maybe someone like Josue De Paula and Zyhir Hope. If Friday is any indication, the fans would just hope to get back Muncy as soon as possible.