OSAKA (Kyodo) Orix Buffaloes third baseman Jose Fernandez has been diagnosed with a broken left cheekbone and will need about three months to make a full recovery, the Pacific League club said Monday.
Fernandez was hit in the face by a hard grounder off the bat of Taketoshi Goto in the seventh inning of a 10-8 loss to the Seibu Lions on Sunday afternoon.
The 34-year-old Dominican has struggled in his seventh season in Japan with a .261 batting average, 15 home runs and 47 RBIs in 117 games.
Among other foreign players on the team, Alex Cabrera (right toe), Tuffy Rhodes (right hand) and Greg LaRocca (right hand) have suffered broken bones at some point this season.