Updated: May 26, 2011, 2:24 PM ET Buster Posey on DL with broken bone
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SAN FRANCISCO -- Giants star catcher Buster Posey is likely out for the season with a fractured bone in his lower left leg suffered during a collision at home plate with Florida's Scott Cousins.
The Giants announced Thursday that Posey was on the disabled list with the injury, a night after he was crushed by Cousins while trying to block the winning run in the 12th inning against the Marlins.
Posey has been San Francisco's best cleanup hitter this season, a team leader in the clubhouse and key cog behind the plate for one of the best rotations in baseball. He was batting .284 with four home runs and 21 RBIs, just finding his groove in the midst of a 13-game hitting streak.
On his Twitter account, Giants third baseman Pablo Sandoval said, "Good morning I feel so bad because we lost buster for rest of the season it's gonna be hard with out him."
Cousins tagged from third base on a sacrifice fly, beating the throw from Nate Schierholtz and lowering his shoulder to slam into Posey for a brutal, but clean, hit on the reigning NL Rookie of the Year.
Posey lay dazed, writhing in pain and curling up in a ball for several minutes as the ballpark fell silent. After several minutes, with fans chanting "Posey! Posey!" he was helped off the field by two team trainers holding his left leg and looking stunned.
Posey's agent, Jeff Berry, said Thursday morning he reached out to Joe Torre, leader of on-field operations for Major League Baseball, and raised the idea of changing the rules regarding plays at the plate. He also spoke with the players' union about the play.
"You leave players way too vulnerable," Berry said. "I can tell you Major League Baseball is less than it was before [Posey's injury]. It's stupid. I don't know if this ends up leading to a rule change, but it should. The guy [at the plate] is too exposed.
"If you go helmet to helmet in the NFL, it's a $100,000 fine, but in baseball, you have a situation in which runners are [slamming into] fielders. It's brutal. It's borderline shocking. It just stinks for baseball. I'm going to call Major League Baseball and put this on the radar. Because it's just wrong."
ESPN The Magazine's Buster Olney and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Buster Posey on DL with broken bone
