ATLANTA — The Braves won Game 1 of the World Series on Tuesday night in Houston, but also suffered a major loss when starting pitcher Charlie Morton left the game with a broken fibula after a comeback grounder hit him in the right leg.
Shortly after Morton left the game, the team announced the injury would force him to miss the rest of the World Series.
On Wednesday, it was announced who would replace him on the roster for the rest of the series. Left-hander Tucker Davidson, who made four starts for the club during the regular season, will join the Braves as Morton's replacement.
Major League Baseball said it had approved the roster substitution after the league's medical director, Dr. Gary Green, confirmed Morton's injury with the evaluating physician.
"MLB Postseason rules provide that a Club may request permission from the Commissioner's Office to replace a player who is unable to play because of an injury," an MLB statement said. "The Commissioner's Office may approve or disapprove the request based on the specific facts and circumstances."
Davidson, 25, compiled a 3.60 ERA across 20 innings in his four starts for Atlanta this season, which all came in May and June. He struck out 18 and walked eight, allowing 15 hits and three home runs.
A forearm injury caused him to miss most of the rest of the season. He made one comeback start for Triple-A Gwinnett, on Oct. 3, allowing one run in three innings with five strikeouts and a walk.
The roster move doesn't necessarily mean Davidson will pick up Morton's starts in the rotation - pitchers who were already on the postseason roster, such as Drew Smyly and Kyle Wright, are also capable of starting.
Smyly, a veteran lefty, pitched 3 1/3 innings in Game 4 of the NLCS in relief and is probably the likeliest option to take the mound when Morton would have next started.
