TAMPA -- Reliever Hunter Bigge was struck on the right side of his face by a foul ball while in the dugout and carted off the field during the Rays’ 4-1 loss to the Orioles on Thursday night at George M. Steinbrenner Field.
Bigge was taken to a local hospital for observation, but the initial update that Rays manager Kevin Cash relayed from head athletic trainer Joe Benge was positive. Bigge never lost consciousness, was not hit in the eye and was coherent and conversational.
Bigge was set to remain in the hospital overnight for further evaluation and testing. The Rays expect to have another update on Friday.
“Certainly you feel for Hunter and his wife. I can't imagine what she and he were going through,” Cash said. “Scary for everybody, none more than them.”
The incident took place during the seventh inning of the series finale, when Adley Rutschman fouled a pitch from Connor Seabold toward the home dugout on the first-base side of Steinbrenner Field. The 105.1 mph line drive struck Bigge, a 27-year-old reliever on the injured list while recovering from a right lat strain, as he was leaning against the railing.
“Being out in the outfield, I didn’t really see much. I heard it, though. I was 350 feet away. I heard every bit of it,” Rays left fielder Jake Mangum said. “It was just scary.”
Strength and conditioning coach Steve Chase was there to catch Bigge, and Cash said assistant athletic trainer Aaron Scott did a “tremendous job” attending to him immediately after he was hit. Benge stepped out of the dugout to call for a medical cart, then Bigge was put in a neck brace and placed on a stretcher before being carted off the field.
In an encouraging sign, Bigge flashed a thumbs-up sign as he was taken off the field.
“It’s really scary. It’s terrifying. I mean, we all sit in these dugouts every night, and in a lot of ways you kind of feel like sitting ducks a lot of nights,” Orioles interim manager Tony Mansolino said. “It’s just terrifying. Wish the best for the player that got hit.”
Players on the field and in both dugouts were obviously shaken by the incident. Seabold was emotional on the mound, and Rutschman reacted in shock in the batter’s box. Tampa Bay’s fielders remained on the diamond, watching the dugout from afar, but the ballpark was mostly silent during the nearly nine-minute delay between Bigge being struck and leaving the field.
“I mean, it's one thing to see that happen on TV. It sucks either way, but like seeing it in person and witnessing it in person, something like that, it's terrible, man,” Seabold said. “Just having to keep pitching after that, too, was rough. I mean, it is what it is, but I'm glad that Biggs is doing all right. It's terrible.”
Added Rutschman: “I saw it off my bat. It’s really, really scary. Praying for him and for his recovery and hope he’s doing OK. … I haven’t really been a part of something really like that. Yeah, you never want to see that.”
Seabold admitted he was “still kind of reeling a little bit” when he threw his next pitch, a ball to walk Rutschman. But he managed to get through the rest of his three-inning appearance without allowing a run.
Several players noted it was difficult to play after seeing a teammate carted off the field like Bigge was, however. After he was hit, many Rays players and staff noticeably watched the rest of the game below the railing, behind the dugout fence’s protective netting.
“I think everybody just gets shaken up. It's just tough to see,” Rays catcher Danny Jansen said. “But after he gets carted off, got to get back to playing a ballgame. Seabold took his time, and we had to keep competing.”
Despite the loss, the Rays’ thoughts were clearly elsewhere as they dressed and headed home after the game.
“Hunter's a great human, for starters. You never want to see anyone get hurt in any regard, but just in general, anything to the head is equally as terrifying,” Rays starter Drew Rasmussen said. “Our thoughts and our prayers are with him. It's just crazy how quickly things can happen and how quickly things can go south, and we're thinking about him.
“In all honesty, like, tonight's game -- who cares? It's a friend. He's a husband, a son. There's so many things that are so much more important than the game of baseball. We hope he's OK. It sounds like our first update was pretty positive, but we're thinking about him, for sure.”