Red Sox infield prospect Jeter Downs sprained his left ankle in Triple-A Worcester’s 9-8 win over the Rochester Red Wings at Polar Park on Thursday night.
With two outs in the fifth inning, Downs roped a single to left field and attempted to turn it into a double. He instead tripped halfway between first and second base and immediately grabbed at his left ankle.
After being tagged out, Downs remained on the ground in visible pain. He was escorted off the field by WooSox outfielder Abraham Almonte and bench coach Jose Flores, though he was unable to put any weight on his left leg as he was helped to the Worcester dugout.
On Friday afternoon, Downs was seen limping around the WooSox’ clubhouse. He was not in the starting lineup for Friday’s contest against Rochester and is considered day-to-day, per manager Chad Tracy.
“We all think a sprained ankle is like going to the outside. It’s more of an inward sprain,” Tracy said, via MassLive.com’s Christopher Smith. “So hopefully, not too long. “It’s hard to say. Day-to-day right now. Let him do treatment like crazy and see where we’re at when we get through the weekend.”
Downs, 24, is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 19 prospect in Boston’s farm system. In 81 games with the WooSox this season, the right-handed hitter has batted .197/.316/.412 (95 wRC+) to go along with 11 doubles, one triple, 16 home runs, 33 RBIs, 56 runs scored, 18 stolen bases, 38 walks, and 99 strikeouts over 335 plate appearances.
One of three players acquired from the Dodgers in the Mookie Betts trade in February 2020, Downs made his major-league debut for the Red Sox in June. In two stints (June 20-23, July 9-30) with the big-league club thus far, the native Colombian has slashed .154/.171/.256 (8 wRC+) with one double, one homer, four RBIs, four runs scored, one walk, and 21 strikeouts across 14 games spanning 41 trips to the plate.
Traditionally a middle infielder throughout his minor-league career, Downs debuted for Boston at third base and has since been worth one out above average over 32 innings at the position in the majors.
(Picture of Jeter Downs: Brian Fluharty/Getty Images)
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