TORONTO -- Steven Souza Jr. had to leave the Rays' 4-1 loss to the Blue Jays Saturday afternoon after getting hit by a pitched ball on his left hand.
For now, the forecast is good that the Rays' outfielder suffered nothing more than a contusion. X-rays were negative and he'll be re-evaluated again prior to Sunday's game.
"The fact that I went in there and heard the good news that it wasn't broken, I feel very blessed and fortunate at this point," Souza said. "We won't really know, until tomorrow, the extent of it, until I come to the field. Just looks right now like it's a bone bruise and it will be OK."
When asked if he thought he could play on Sunday, Souza said that would be a wait-and-see situation.
Facing Joe Biagini with one out in the seventh, Souza took a 94.7-mph four-seam fastball off his left hand on the first pitch.
The Rays' right-fielder dropped to the ground writhing in obvious pain. Rays assistant athletic trainer Paul Harker and manager Kevin Cash went to the batter's box to tend to Souza.
"He throws 95-plus," Souza said. "So whenever you get hit by a 95-mph fastball, it usually doesn't feel very good."
After a brief examination, Souza left the game. Shane Peterson was inserted as a pinch-runner, then he remained in the game as the left fielder, moving Peter Bourjos to right.
Boston's Joe Kelly hit Souza on his left hand on Aug. 1, 2015. Souza came away from that one with a fractured hand that cost him 34 games.
Souza said he didn't have a lot of swelling, but he planned to continue icing his hand Saturday night. When asked if he'd have another x-ray on Sunday, Souza said he didn't "know what the protocol" was.
"I just know it's negative today," Souza said. "And tomorrow it might be something different."
Souza was 1-for-2 in Saturday's game. He's hitting .330 with four home runs and 17 RBIs on the season.
Bill Chastain