Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Hunter Bigge taken to hospital after getting hit by foul ball in dugout

TAMPA, Fla. — Rays pitcher Hunter Bigge was carted off the sphere in a daunting scene and brought to a hospital after getting struck within the face by a foul ball lined into the Tampa Bay dugout Thursday evening.

Bigge was positioned on a backboard and gave a thumbs up earlier than being pushed by ambulance to a close-by hospital for checks. He by no means misplaced consciousness and was in a position to converse with first responders, Rays supervisor Kevin Money mentioned.

Within the high of the seventh inning, Baltimore Orioles catcher Adley Rutschman sharply pulled a pitch into the Tampa Bay dugout on the primary base aspect and the ball hit Bigge, a 27-year-old right-hander at present on the injured checklist.

Emergency medical personnel shortly arrived to take care of Bigge. After a number of quiet minutes, as visibly involved Rays gamers knelt within the area, Bigge was loaded onto a stretcher and carted off.

After the sport, Money mentioned Bigge was struck within the face. The ball left Rutschman’s bat at 105 mph, in keeping with Statcast.

Bigge, on the 15-day injured checklist with a lat pressure, acquired a standing ovation from the Steinbrenner Subject crowd as he was loaded onto a cart. The sport resumed after an eight-minute delay, and Baltimore held on for a 4-1 victory.

Bigge was chosen by the Chicago Cubs within the twelfth spherical of the 2019 beginner draft from Harvard and made his main league debut for them on July 9 final yr. He was traded 19 days later to Tampa Bay together with Christopher Morel and minor leaguer Ty Johnson for All-Star third baseman Isaac Paredes.

In 32 profession appearances, together with one begin, Bigge has a 2.51 ERA and one save. This season, he has a 2.40 ERA in 13 aid outings masking 15 innings.