BOSTON -- Just a month into the season, the Tigers are facing an injury to a third starting pitcher.

Righty Jordan Zimmermann left Thursday’s 7-3 loss to the Red Sox after the third inning because of right elbow discomfort. He had allowed five hits, five earned runs (including a home run) and three walks and struck out two before exiting. Manager Ron Gardenhire said Zimmermann did not experience problems with his elbow prior to the start.

“He was pitching with it,” Gardenhire said after the game. “So, it’s not good. We’ll get him checked out when we get to Chicago [to play the White Sox], do a bunch more tests.”

Zimmermann’s early exit came as a surprise to both teams. Catcher John Hicks didn’t notice Zimmermann was hurt from behind the plate. Red Sox shortstop Xander Bogaerts similarly didn’t think anything was amiss during his at-bats.

“Not at all,” Bogaerts said. “We swung good, but he looked normal. He had speed -- 90, 91. Maybe he was pitching through it.”

Zimmermann’s toughness made it difficult for the Tigers to suspect something could be awry. The 11th-year veteran has made 256 starts, including eight complete games and a no-hitter. The news of an injury left Josh Harrison “kind of dumbfounded” because of Zimmermann’s grind-it-out mentality.

“He’s not a guy that’s going to show it,” Harrison said. “That’s the tough thing about it. That’s what makes it that much harder, because a lot of guys that are in his situation that have been playing for a while, we know how to grind through things and play through certain bumps and bruises. But when you see a guy like that go through something like that, you know it’s real because that guy’s going to take the ball every fifth day any way that he can.”

The Tigers’ pitching rotation has been bitten drastically by the injury bug. Michael Fulmer underwent season-ending Tommy John surgery in late March. Weeks later, Matt Moore had season-ending surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee. Now, the team waits to learn more about Zimmermann, who underwent Tommy John surgery in 2009.

This is a situation where the entire team, from pitching to offense to defense, will need to step up. The bullpen already was relied upon heavily in the Tigers’ doubleheader on Tuesday. As of Thursday night, a starter for Saturday’s game against the White Sox had not been determined. Roster moves could be made.

“It’s not a good scenario,” Gardenhire said. “It happens. Now we’re just going to have to keep figuring out ways to get through it.”

Tigers throughout the clubhouse expressed their well wishes for Zimmermann to make a quick recovery. The schedule doesn’t slow down for them, either. They still have a three-game series in Chicago ahead of them before they complete their stretch of 13 consecutive scheduled games on Sunday.

“You wouldn’t think that in your wildest dreams, or wish that on your worst enemy,” Harrison said of the Tigers’ injuries. “But unfortunately, game of baseball. Like I tell everybody, the main thing is for us, we want to be healthy. At the end of the day, that’s all we can ask for. We’ve had to take a couple of tough blows.”