Ugly injury costs the Red Sox their breakout star and then some

An ugly scene took place for the Boston Red Sox on Monday when sluggers Tyler O'Neill and Rafael Devers collided while trying to catch a fly ball against the Cleveland Guardians. Both players were forced to exit the game as a result.

O'Neill needed eight stitches in his forehead following the collision. On Thursday, however, the Red Sox got more bad news on both players.

Gabrielle Starr of the Boston Herald reported that Devers is getting an MRI on his knee. Manager Alex Cora stated that it was precautionary, but that he wasn't feeling his best yesterday.

To make matters worse, O'Neill is being placed on the 7-Day concussion injured list, retroactive to Apr. 16. Outfielder Rob Refsnyder has been activated from the 10-Day IL and will take O'Neill's place on the roster temporarily.

Tyler O'Neill hits IL, Rafael Devers receives MRI on knee

Fortunately, in the case of O'Neill, his IL stint can be backdated by two days since it is retroactive to Tuesday. But it's still a major blow to the Red Sox to lose him.

Acquired from the St. Louis Cardinals last offseason, O'Neill has been a centerpiece in the Red Sox lineup. He is already hitting .313 with seven home runs, eight RBI, and an OPS of 1.209.

Devers' issue appears to be less significant, though the Red Sox are without him for Thursday's series finale against the Guardians. The team is hoping to earn a split against Cleveland.

The Red Sox own a record of 10-9 and sit in third place in the AL East, three games back of the first-place New York Yankees. They'll certainly hope that O'Neill is back shortly.

Any time without Devers would be a huge blow for the Red Sox, but for the time being, they may not have either him or O'Neill in the lineup. The collision was quite severe. Time will tell how long it takes the two Sox stars to heal.