BALTIMORE (AP) — George Springer twisted his head, absorbed the full impact of a fastball near the ear flap of his helmet, and dropped to the ground in a heap.
As Toronto’s designated hitter lay prone at the plate, the raucous crowd of 20,176 at Camden Yards immediately became silent. Quite suddenly, Baltimore’s seven-run ninth-inning lead over the Blue Jays on Monday night became of secondary importance to the condition of Springer, who was essentially motionless in the dirt.
After several anxious moments, Springer slowly lifted his head. He mouthed the word “Wow!” before walking to the dugout with aid from a man on each side.
Whew.
“He’s doing all right,” manager John Schneider said afterward. “Kind of got him on the shoulder and then the helmet. Thankfully he was able to turn a little bit, too.”
It was as good a result as could be expected after the 96 mph pitch from Kade Stroud struck Springer in the head in the Blue Jays’ 11-4 loss. Stroud crouched behind the mound, a worried look on his face as he watched, waiting and desperately hoping for Springer to get up.
“That’s the worst part of baseball for any side, when a pitch gets thrown that high,” Schneider said. “You don’t think about baseball. You think about the human. It’s scary. It happens. It sucks.”
Schneider was among the first to know that Springer was not in a life-threatening situation.
“He was alert the whole time,” Schneider said. “He was kind of talking to me … which is a good thing. But you hate seeing that happen to anyone at any time.”
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