Kyle Tucker Was Diagnosed With Hairline Hand Fracture In June

"Tucker jammed his right hand diving into second base on a stolen base attempt in a game against the Reds on June 1. Initial x-rays came back negative. However, Rogers writes that follow-up testing revealed a small fracture at the top of his hand between his ring finger and pinky. The Cubs did not announce the diagnosis at the time, and Tucker has not spent any time on the injured list. The four-time All-Star preferred to play through the injury."

"In retrospect, it's fair to question whether that was prudent. Tucker had been one of the best hitters in MLB for the season's first two months. He owned a .284/.395/.524 slash with 12 homers across 269 plate appearances through June 1. Since then, he's batting .236/.352/.368 in almost the exact same amount of playing time. Tucker has connected on six longballs over the past two and a half months."

"Tucker's plate discipline remains strong - he has actually walked more often than he has struck out during that stretch - but his power has completely evaporated. His rate of hard contact (batted balls with an exit velocity of at least 95 MPH) was between 44-50% in each of the first two months. It remained solid at 42.9% in June but has plummeted below 30% in each of the past two months."

Kyle Tucker suffered a hairline fracture in his right hand after jamming it diving into second base on June 1. Initial x-rays were negative, but follow-up testing revealed a small fracture between his ring finger and pinky. He did not go on the injured list and continued playing. Tucker produced elite numbers through June 1 but has since seen a drop in overall batting line and power, with only six home runs since then. Plate discipline has remained strong, with more walks than strikeouts recently, while hard-contact rates have fallen from roughly 44-50% early to under 30% over the past two months. Opponents and observers have noted the change and speculated about his health.

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