BOSTON — Boston Red Sox catcher Christian Vazquez will miss 6 to 8 weeks after undergoing surgery on his right pinky finger on Tuesday.
Red Sox infielder Marco Hernandez also had surgery on his left shoulder and will miss the rest of the season.
Vazquez broke the finger while sliding into second base during Sunday’s game against the Royals in Kansas City.
Vazquez has been Boston’s primary starting catcher with 54 starts in 91 games this season while Sandy Leon has 36 starts and Blake Swihart has one.
Vazquez has a .213 average with three home runs and 14 RBIs while Leon has a .252 average with four homers and 18 RBIs. Swihart is hitting .185 with 4 RBIs and hasn’t homered.
The Red Sox could be looking for more offensive punch from Swihart.
“He’ll be fine,” Boston manager Alex Cora said in a redsox.com report. “We trust the guy. He’s been working hard blocking and throwing. He prepares like Christian and Sandy. We’re not going to hesitate. He’s going to play. We’re in a good spot. We’re going to miss Christian, of course. He’s the next guy and he’s been with us the whole season. He knows what we want from them. He knows what we do on the mound. We’ll be OK.”
Hernandez, 25, had made it to the majors with the Red Sox in 2016 and opened the next season on the Boston roster but missed most of that season after undergoing shoulder surgery.
He hit .284 in 116 at-bats with the Red Sox and can play shortstop, second base and third base.
The Red Sox have won seven in a row as they head toward the All-Star break with the best record in baseball. They headed into Tuesday night’s game against the Texas Rangers with a 2½-game lead over the New York Yankees in the AL East.