A non-contact injury forced Giants catcher Joey Bart out of Monday night’s game against the Cardinals, and will possibly interrupt one of the most promising stretches of his career.
Bart, 26, left the game with no outs in the seventh inning. He pulled up while running to second on his double down the left field line.
Bart’s double was the Giants’ first extra base hit of the night.
Bart is hitting .303 with a .378 on-base percentage. His power hadn’t come around yet this season, but a refined approach at the plate reduced his swing-and-miss.
Last year, Bart struck out an alarming 38.5% of the time. In 13 games this year, he was closer to league average on that front.
The former second overall pick discarded the pronounced leg kick he previously used, instead using a more simple batting stance. Picking out fastballs to attack has been a priority; the 3-2 pitch he drove in the seventh inning was a fastball down the middle.
Conversely, Jordan Montgomery struck out Bart in his first two plate appearances Monday night by giving him nothing but off-speed pitches.
Defensively, Bart has been terrific this season. He caught two Mets stealing on Saturday and ranks among the league leaders in framing metrics.
Bart’s season has already been interrupted by a back strain. The nature of this particular injury aren’t yet known.