Ben Lively exits with injury against White Sox

CHICAGO — The White Sox had only mustered one hit through the first 1 2/3 innings against Ben Lively on Tuesday night at Guaranteed Rate Field. He was simply looking to keep that momentum cruising by retiring Dominic Fletcher for the final out of the inning.

What he didn’t know was that Fletcher was about to be the last hitter he faced for the night.

Fletcher laced a 96.4 mph line drive back at Lively, who couldn’t get out of the way. Lively’s left leg was exposed as he finished following through his motion after releasing his sweeper. The ball appeared to strike Lively squarely on the back of his right leg, prompting him to hit the ground and tumble in pain.

If Lively, who left the game with a right thigh contusion, was looking for a silver lining while clutching his thigh, where a shiny bruise is destined to show, he peeked up long enough to recognize that the ball somehow ricocheted off of him and rolled directly to first baseman Josh Naylor, who was able to record the final out of the frame.

So, Lively’s mission was accomplished, but at what expense?

The one thing the Guardians know they can’t afford at this time of the season is another starting pitching injury. So, the team could only hope that Lively would test out OK after he was immediately removed from the game and Pedro Avila was called on to start the third inning.

Cleveland already has Alex Cobb listed as day to day, fighting off a blister on his pitching hand, which is why Joey Cantillo remains on the big league roster. If the club would need to find another starter to now replace Lively, Logan Allen would probably be the next to rejoin the rotation.

For now, the Guardians will have to hope that this isn’t too serious of a problem as they fight to win a division title and earn a first-round bye in the playoffs.