Simmons hit by pitch on hands, exits vs. A's

May 9th, 2017

OAKLAND -- Angels shortstop was removed in the bottom of the second inning of Monday night's 3-2 loss to the A's with contusions in his left hand and right thumb.
Simmons was hit by a pitch during a first-inning at-bat against A's right-hander . Trainers and Angels manager Mike Scioscia checked on Simmons, but he elected to stay in the game initially. 
"He's a little bit sore, but he's day to day," Scioscia said after the game. "We'll see how it sets up tomorrow. Fortunately the X-rays were negative. Looks like it was just a contusion."
Danny Espinosa entered the game as the second baseman in the bottom of the second inning while Cliff Pennington moved over to shortstop. Simmons is batting .254/.326/.347 with three homers and 12 RBIs this season while bringing his stellar brand of defense.
The Angels can ill afford another injury. The Angels currently have eight pitchers on the disabled list and outfielder has missed the last three starts with left hamstring tightness.