Hunter Greene leaves Cincinnati Reds game after hit by comebacker on leg

Hunter Greene had a promising outing against the Tampa Bay Rays cut short Monday after he was hit by a comebacker to his right shin in the third inning.

Yandy Díaz hit a one-hop ground ball to the mound with a 97-mph exit velocity in the third inning, and the ball deflected off Greene's shin all the way to first baseman Wil Myers. Greene didn't run to cover first base, briefly touching his leg before staring toward the outfield in apparent pain.

Greene threw three warmup pitches in front of Manager David Bell and trainer Tomas Vera before the decision was made to keep him in the game. Greene stranded a runner at third base with a strikeout and an infield pop-up, but he did not return from the dugout for the fourth inning.

Throughout Monday's outing, with a first-pitch temperature at 52 degrees, Greene's average fastball velocity was down around 2.5 mph. Greene threw a 97.7-mph fastball to Randy Arozarena after the ball off his shin, his second-fastest pitch of the game.

It was the second-shortest start in Greene's young career. He allowed three hits and zero runs across 47 pitches with one strikeout and zero walks.