Xander Bogaerts (Ankle) Is Already Out Of His Walking Boot

Xander Bogaerts was spotted in a walking boot after suffering an ankle injury against the Rays last Sunday. He's already walking without it.

The Red Sox shortstop is expected to miss 10-14 days after being placed on the disabled list with what the team described as a "small crack" in the talus bone of his left ankle. He's already making progress after ridding himself of the walking boot.

Bogaerts told Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald that he feels a lot better than he did on Sunday, no longer needing the boot to be able to move around comfortably.

"I needed a boot my first few days, my first day especially," Bogaerts said. "Walking back to my place was really tough. I couldn’t do it on my own. But today I could pretty much walk around, not pain-free. It’s all dependent on the weight that I walk. That’s when I get the most pain."

He added that he's still unsure exactly how he suffered the ankle injury, but he's "very optimistic" that he'll be right back to the same player once he returns anyway.

The injury was unfortunate timing for Bogaerts, who was off to a scorching start. He's batting .368 with two home runs and nine RBIs in nine games so far in 2018, and still leads all of baseball with seven doubles.

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