New York Yankees Star Hit in the Face by 91 Miles Per Hour Fastball — and Scores a Run
That’s gotta hurt!
Yankees first baseman Luke Voit had a nasty surprise while facing off against the Colorado Rockies on Saturday, getting hit by a 91 miles per hour fastball in the fourth inning of the game.
Just one strike away from being retired for the at-bat, Rockies’ Chad Bettis threw a pitch which completely missed the strike zone, making contact with Voit and clipping the bottom of his chin.
After a brief conversation to determine whether he felt okay to stay in the game, Voit opted to keep playing, and advanced to first. Remaining in the game for the rest of the inning, he was even able to score a run for his team, who went on to win 11-5.
Although he initially continued to play after getting hit, the slugger was then removed from the game as a “precautionary” measure.
Fortunately for Yankees fans, Voit passed his concussion testing, and on Sunday, the team announced that he would be returning to face off against the Rockies that afternoon.
A scary moment in the bottom of the fourth, but take a deep breath Yankees fans. The Yankees have announced that Luke Voit was removed from today’s game for precautionary reasons and underwent concussion protocol testing. Those test results came back clear. pic.twitter.com/s92l7K6Y7z
— YES Network (@YESNetwork) July 20, 2019
Following the game, Yankees catcher Austin Romine told reporters that he wasn’t surprised by Voit’s decision to keep playing.
“If you know Luke, you know he’s going to play the game. The guy’s like a bull out there,” he said, according to ESPN.
Voit’s teammate DJ LeMahieu went on to add that he was “just glad that it’s not worse.”
“It could have been real bad. It still clipped him pretty good, but thankfully it’s not,” he shared.
*Updated Lineup*
Let’s finish this homestand with a sweep.
Powered by @Biofreeze pic.twitter.com/jgUJ7dSCXs— New York Yankees (@Yankees) July 21, 2019
Years earlier, Voit’s teammate Giancarlo Stanton was in a similar situation — and wasn’t so lucky.
While playing with the Miami Marlins in 2014, Stanton was hit in the face by an 88 mph fastball, leaving him with a season-ending injury.
In addition to severe swelling, Stanton suffered from facial fractures and dental damage, although he would go on to admit that things could have been worse for him.
“I was really fortunate,” he told reporters at the time, according to MLB.com. “I could have my mouth wired shut now. I could have a plate in my face. I could have a lot of things. I’ll take a few missing teeth over all of that.”
“You hear about people losing their eye, or you lose vision,” he added. “My jaw can be broken. I can lose as many teeth. As long as I’m able to see, that’s the big career thing.”
