Plate umpire Nick Mahrley left the game between the New York Yankees and Colorado Rockies in the fifth inning after being hit in the neck by Giancarlo Stanton’s broken bat.
Stanton’s bat shattered when he made contact with a bloop single to left field. The barrel struck Mahrley on the left side of his mask, knocking it off.
Mahrley immediately collapsed and was attended to by the Yankees’ athletic training staff. A medic came onto the field, and Mahrley was put on a stretcher as the crowd applauded.
After the Yankees’ 10-3 victory, Major League Baseball announced that Mahrley had a concussion and would not work his next assigned series.
“We’re all hoping for the best with Nick and we’ll see what goes on,” Yankees slugger Aaron Judge said. “They got a tough job back there, man. It’s not easy; you got both benches yelling at you throughout the game on balls and strikes.
You’ve got to make split-second decisions. You’ve got players mad at you, and you’re trying to do your best, and then to get hit on the side of the head with the bat, it’s tough. To see him get carted off wasn’t easy but just definitely hoping for the best.”
When play resumed, crew chief Marvin Hudson took over behind the plate, and second base umpire Hunter Wendelstedt moved from second base to first base.
The 41-year-old Mahrley had worked 473 games as a call-up umpire before becoming a full-time umpire before last season.
