Mets' Ruben Tejada fractures right fibula on Chase Utley's hard slide

— -- LOS ANGELES -- New York Mets shortstop Ruben Tejada suffered a fractured right fibula after being involved in a nasty collision at second base in the seventh inning of Game 2 of the National League Division Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday night at Dodger Stadium. 

The Dodgers' Chase Utley slid late and hit Tejada hard just as Tejada was turning around to attempt a double play on a grounder hit by Howie Kendrick. Tejada flipped over Utley and landed hard on his left side. Mets trainers wrapped padding around Tejada's right leg, and he was transported off the field on a cart, giving a little fist pump on his way out.

The play proved pivotal in the game. The Dodgers scored the tying run, and after a replay review, the umpires ruled that Tejada had never touched the second-base bag, awarding Utley second.

The Dodgers went on to score a total of four runs in the inning en route to a series-tying 5-2 victory.

Utley had entered the game in the seventh as a pinch hitter and singled to right, giving the Dodgers runners at the corners before Kendrick hit a sharp grounder to Daniel Murphy, who flipped it to Tejada.

This wasn't the first time Utley and Tejada were involved in a hard play at second base. As a member of the  Philadelphia Phillies, Utley had angered Mets players in 2010, when he also upended Tejada at second with an aggressive slide.

"He's a second baseman. If he wants guys sliding like that into him, then it's perfectly fine,"  David Wright said back then. "He knows how to play the game. If he doesn't mind guys coming in like that when he's turning a double play, then we don't have any problem with it. It's a legal slide. It's within the rules. But somebody is going to get hurt."

The Mets have  Eric Campbell and Eric Young Jr. on the taxi squad in Florida in case Tejada needs to be replaced. Tejada would be ineligible for the National League Championship Series if he is subbed out.

ESPN.com Mets reporter Adam Rubin contributed to this report.