*Photo from the San Diego Union Tribune*
San Diego Padres starting catcher Austin Nola suffered a fractured middle finger on his left hand, and it is unclear if Nola will be ready for opening day, according to an announcement by Padres manager Jayce Tingler. Nola fractured his finger during the Padres spring training game on Saturday, and, when pain intensified after the game, he was evaluated and diagnosed with a fractured finger.
The exact recovery timeline of the injury is not yet known, as the injury has just been sustained. There is no current timetable for his return. Nola fractured his finger while catching a foul tip on Saturday, but was intially able to finish the game. Nola will be re-evaluted later this week in the hopes of getting a better idea of the extent of the injury, and maybe to establish a timeline for return.
Tingler said of the injury that "We’re going to give it a couple days of treatment, see how quickly it can heal up and go from there. We need to wait and see how he responds. Will he be ready for Opening Day? I don't know. I know he's extremely tough. It wouldn't surprise me if he's ready sooner rather than later, but we're not going to know much until he gets some treatment on it."
If Nola misses some time at the start of the regular season due to his injury, backup Victor Caratini and top catching prospect Luis Campusano will likely see an increase in playing time, with Caratini likely to take over the starting catching duties. Caratini was traded to the Padres along with Yu Darvish in a blockbuster deal this winter, as Caratini has become Darvish's personal catcher.
The Padres have had some recent injury problems flare up during spring training, in addition to Nola's fractured finger. OFTrent Grisham strained his hamstring on Thursday, OF Wil Myers has been dealing with right knee inflammation since Friday, and Ha-Seong Kim was scratched due to "Aches and pains" from today's spring training game.
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