Red Sox Provide Pair of Injury Updates Following Win Over Rangers

The Red Sox secured a thrilling 4-3 win on Thursday night to avoid the sweep against the Rangers, but two key injuries stood out amid the celebration.

Star first baseman Willson Contreras left the game right before Trevor Story 's game-winning home run, and star closer Aroldis Chapman was not available when Boston tried to protect a one-run lead in the ninth. Both players are crucial to Boston's chances at making a deep playoff run, and with less than two weeks until the playoffs begin, the team needs to be smart with injury management.

After the win, the Red Sox gave injury updates on each player, and they were both encouraging compared to how serious the injuries could have been. The Red Sox head to Tampa Bay to play the surging Rays next, where they will continue to manage these injuries with the playoffs in mind.

Here's the latest on Contreras and Chapman following Thursday's win.

Contreras had to leave Thursday night's game after getting hit by a pitch in his hand, but the injury does not appear too serious. The first baseman said that even though it felt like he fractured his hand, the x-rays came back negative.

"Sore. Painful. My hand was numb for like five minutes," Contreras said, via Chris Cotillo . "That was the reason I came out of the game. I have fractured, before, the same hand. It felt like a fracture. Thankfully, it's not a fracture on the top of the bone. I'm just frustrated."

It's still too early to tell whether Contreras will be in the lineup for Friday night's series opener against the Rays, but the Boston should feel relieved that Contreras doesn't have a broken bone in his hand.

When the Red Sox took a one-run lead into the ninth inning, Boston surprisingly went to Garrett Whitlock to close it out instead of Aroldis Chapman. After the game, Chad Tracy revealed that Chapman is dealing with an injury to his lat that the team is monitoring.

"He's just dealing with some lat tightness we're going to be conservative with," Tracy said, via Cotillo . "It's getting better, but we've got to make sure it gets there. That's why he wasn't available tonight."

Whitlock worked around a single and induced a game-ending double play to secure the save, showing that he can step in at closer when Chapman is unavailable. Chapman has not pitched since Sunday and has only appeared in two games since Labor Day for the Red Sox.