NEW YORK -- Mets designated hitter J.D. Martinez left Tuesday¡¯s 9-4 loss to the Athletics in the bottom of the third inning with a left elbow contusion after being hit by a pitch thrown by right-hander Joe Boyle earlier in the game. The slugger is listed as day to day.

With one out in the second inning and the count 2-2, Martinez was hit in the elbow by a 99.6 mph fastball. He jogged near the A¡¯s dugout in pain, but remained in the game until the third, when Mark Vientos replaced him as a pinch hitter.

At first, Martinez thought he was going to be OK once he advanced to second base on a walk by Jeff McNeil. But Martinez felt the pain again as he scored on a single by Jose Iglesias, prompting the decision to lift him from the game.

"I just know it was really swollen and hurt a lot. But I didn¡¯t think anything was broken,¡± Martinez said. ¡°It¡¯s pretty much no strength. That¡¯s what it feels like. I can¡¯t squeeze my hand. It hit that little nerve there."

Martinez wasn¡¯t wearing an arm guard when he was hit by the pitch. In fact, he has never worn one during his career.

"[The team asked], ¡®you don¡¯t wear an elbow guard?¡¯ I¡¯ve never worn one. I never got hit there before. I got hit in the triceps, in the shoulder, but it was like a heat-seeking missile kept coming at me. I¡¯m going to try wearing [an elbow guard] tomorrow, but we¡¯ll see,¡± he said.

Entering the game, Martinez was hitting .257 with 12 home runs and 53 RBIs.