The Los Angeles Dodgers facing the Colorado Rockies on Opening Day for the first time amounted to a strange affair at Coors Field. It included a pair of wild pitches in the seventh inning, with Austin Barnes having to be removed after the second.
After fielding the ricochet off the back wall behind home plate, Barnes dove in an attempt to tag C.J. Cron before he could slide in safely. The two collided, with Cron’s knee appearing to catch Barnes in the chest/ribs area.
While Barnes initially grabbed at that area as he laid on his back, the focus soon became a bloodied right hand. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts and a trainer went out to check on Barnes, who immediately walked into the clubhouse.
“He’s doing OK. I think initially he was scared,” Roberts said after the Dodgers’ 8-5 loss. “Throwing hand, got a handful of spikes in his hand. There were some cuts, but I think he’ll be fine.”
Although Will Smith is viewed as the Dodgers’ primary catcher, Barnes started on Opening Day due in large part to Clayton Kershaw being on the mound. He had already been lined up to be back behind the plate for Walker Buehler’s start, which remains the case.
“The plan was to get him back in there on Saturday, and I’m still planning on him catching Saturday,” Roberts said. “I think it’s just kind of the fat part of the thumb an hand, so I think he’s fine.”
Barnes went 0-for-2 with two walks prior to being removed.
Roberts bets on Barnes, Smith
Whereas Smith is regarded as a more of a threat with the bat, Barnes’ defensive prowess ranks among the best backstops in Major League Baseball.
“I think with Will, with Austin, the combo, the sum is very good,” Roberts said this spring. “I’ll take that sum against any combo in all of baseball production-wise, offensively and defensively. …
“I think that they complement each other very well, they work well together. I just think he’s got to continue to get better learning pitchers, continuing to refine the skills receiving, but his throwing has been really, really impressive this spring.”
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