Orioles pitching prospect Hunter Harvey sustained a slight fracture to his right fibula after being hit by a comebacker in a minor-league spring start on Saturday.
Executive vice president of baseball operations Dan Duquette told reporters in Sarasota that a CT scan revealed a slight fracture after an initial X-ray came back negative. Harvey is expected to be on crutches for a month and the recovery time is estimated to be roughly six weeks.
The news is unfortunate for Harvey, who was reassigned to minor-league camp last week after coming to major league spring training with the Orioles. The 20-year-old is a consensus top 75 prospect in all of baseball after pitching to a 3.18 ERA in 17 starts for Single-A Delmarva last year. Harvey struck out 106 batters in 87 2/3 innings for the Shorebirds.
His 2014 season came to an end in late July when he was shut down with a strained flexor mass in his right arm, but the 2013 first-round pick was fully cleared to resume pitching in the offseason. The Orioles wanted to monitor his innings in the minor leagues with the possibility of a promotion later in the season.
The lower leg injury will clearly hinder those chances.
