What It Looks Like When You Take a 99mph Ball to the Face

Guardians designated hitter David Fry was expected to be hospitalized overnight after he was hit in the face by a pitch from Detroit's Tarik Skubal in the sixth inning of Cleveland's 5-2 win over the Tigers on Tuesday night, a victory that deadlocked the AL Central division. Fry squared around to try to bunt a 99mph fastball from Skubal and the pitch struck him in the nose and mouth area. As Fry collapsed in the batter's box and immediately grabbed his bloodied face, a visibly shaken Skubal threw off his glove and cap as Cleveland manager Stephen Vogt and trainers rushed onto the field, reports the AP.

Fry laid in the dirt for several minutes before being slowly helped to his feet. He gave a thumbs-up signal as he sat up and was driven off in a cart. The Guardians said Fry was being transported from Lutheran Medical Center to the Cleveland Clinic Main Campus for further testing and observation. The team said it would update Fry's condition Wednesday morning. "It was straight to the face," Vogt said, describing the impact on Fry that shook everyone inside Progressive Field. "We're all thinking about David and his family right now. Obviously, we're glad he is OK, but obviously it's a really scary moment."

Skubal, the reigning AL Cy Young Award winner, paced around the infield as Fry was being assisted. Following the game, Skubal, who allowed just two hits through the first five innings, said seeing Fry in distress was difficult. "Really tough," said the left-hander. "I've already reached out to him. I'm sure his phone is blowing up. I just want to make sure he's all right. Obviously, he seemed like he was OK coming off the field and hopefully it stays that way. ... There's things that are bigger than the game and the health of him is more important than a baseball game."

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Following the incident, Skubal threw a wild pitch to George Valera, who replaced Fry, allowing Cleveland to score. Skubal also had an error—he inexplicably tried to make a blind throw to first between his legs—and was also called for a balk in the sixth inning as the Guardians rallied for three runs to take a 3-2 lead without hitting a ball out of the infield. With its 16th win in 18 games, Cleveland caught Detroit atop the division after trailing the Tigers by 15 1/2 games on July 8. The Guardians were still 12 1/2 games back on Aug. 25, but have gone 17-5 in September. The Tigers, meanwhile, have dropped seven straight and 10 of 11.