SAN FRANCISCO — Buster Posey was carted through a tunnel at AT&T Park on Thursday, a makeshift cast covering his left ankle and no emotion on his face. Not exactly the exit the cornerstone of the World Series champion Giants wanted this season.
A night after Florida’s Scott Cousins crashed into him at home plate, San Francisco’s star catcher was put on the disabled list because of a fractured bone in his lower left leg and three torn ligaments in his ankle, likely ending his season.
“You just don’t replace a guy like Buster Posey,” said Giants manager Bruce Bochy, a former catcher who called on Major League Baseball to review rule changes for collisions at the plate.
Posey has been San Francisco’s cleanup hitter and a key cog behind the plate for one of baseball’s best rotations. The 2010 NL rookie of the year was batting .284 with four home runs and 21 RBIs, just finding his groove in the midst of a 13-game hitting streak to move the Giants into the NL West lead.
Backup Eli Whiteside will be Posey’s replacement. The team also put infielder Mike Fontenot (groin) and utility man Darren Ford (ankle) on the 15-day disabled list and recalled slugger Brandon Belt and catcher Chris Stewart from Triple-A Fresno.
