Cincinnati Reds right-hander Hunter Greene was removed from Monday night's game against the visiting Tampa Bay Rays after three innings with what the team called a right tibia contusion.
The team said Greene underwent X-rays on the leg that were negative.
Tampa Bay's Yandy Diaz hit a ground ball with no outs in the top of the third that struck Greene's right shin. The grounder had a 97 mph exit velocity, but Diaz was retired on the play when the ball caromed to first baseman Wil Myers, who stepped on the bag to get the out.
Greene had a noticeable limp and was examined by manager David Bell and athletic trainer Tomas Vera before throwing several warmup pitches. The right-hander remained in the game and got the final two outs of the third before exiting prior to the fourth.
"It's super tight," Greene said. "I wanted to finish that inning. I knew I could finish it. As soon as I came in it tightened up right away. It would have been foolish to go back out and just use my arm. I'm just happy the X-ray was negative."
He averaged 96.8 mph for 21 fastballs, down from a season average of 99.5 mph.
"He looked fine after throwing a few more pitches," Bell said. "I saw him in-between innings and he was limping really bad. At that point, we made the decision. With these types of contusions, you have to really stay on top of it. But the goal as of right now is to have him make his next start."
Greene held the Rays scoreless over three innings, allowing three hits and striking out one. He departed with a 1-0 lead and the Reds went on to win the game 8-1 over the AL East-leading Rays with reliever Ian Gibaut getting the decision for Cincinnati.
Right-hander Buck Farmer took over for Greene, 23, who entered Monday with a 5.14 ERA in three starts. He has not earned a decision in any of his outings so far this season.
Greene, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2017 amateur draft, was the Reds' starter on Opening Day.
Information from Reuters and The Associated Press was used in this report.