Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Andrew McCutchen has a torn ACL and is out for the remainder of the season, the team said Tuesday.
The former NL MVP had to be helped off the field after injuring the knee during a rundown in the first inning of Monday’s 8-2 loss to the San Diego Padres and was taken to the clubhouse for examination.
“It’s a sucky dynamic,” McCutchen, who said he hopes to be ready by Opening Day next season, told reporters on Tuesday. “It’s not the news I wanted to hear.”
The team originally feared McCutchen had suffered a left knee sprain, but an MRI revealed the ACL tear.
Keep smiling, @TheCUTCH22.
Get well soon! pic.twitter.com/1udcqkKrFG
— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) June 4, 2019
“I didn’t feel it pop or anything,” McCutchen said after Monday’s game. “Something felt uncomfortable, something that made me grab my knee and go down. I’ve had an ACL injury before, and I know what that feels like. This didn’t feel like that.”
Unfortunately for the Phillies, who lead the NL East by just one-half game over the Atlanta Braves entering Tuesday’s games, it was.
Jay Bruce, who was acquired this week in a trade with the Seattle Mariners, replaced McCutchen in left field Monday and again Tuesday. Adam Haseley, who was called up from Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Tuesday, will start in center field.
McCutchen, 32, is hitting .256 with 10 home runs and 29 RBIs as a leadoff hitter in his first season in Philadelphia. He was signed to a $50 million, three-year contract during the offseason after finishing last season with the New York Yankees.
He had been on the injured list just once in his career — he had a fractured left rib in August 2014 — and he has playing at least 140 games over nine straight seasons, which is tied with Alcides Escobar for the longest active streak in the majors.
McCutchen’s 1,452 games played over the last 10 seasons is the most in MLB.
In a corresponding roster move, the Phillies moved pitcher Victor Arano to the 60-day injured list.