Oakland Athletics pitcher Chris Bassitt suffered a scary injury Tuesday night. A line drive hit him in the head.
He was pitching in the second inning of the A’s road game against the Chicago White Sox. With two men on base and a 1-1 count, Brian Goodwin swatted a line drive that smashed into Bassitt’s head above his ear.
Via Twitter, David Haugh, a Chicago radio host, described what happened: “Horrifying scene at Guaranteed Rate Field; A’s pitcher Chris Bassitt hit flush in the face with a line drive off Brian Goodwin’s bat. Face covered with a towel, blood evident as medics take him off on a cart and everybody watching’s a little rattled. Everyone hoping for the best.”
The ball was traveling at about 100 miles per hour when it hit Bassitt on the right side of the head. The line drive came so fast, the pitcher didn’t have enough reaction time to try to at least deflect it.
The medical staff of both teams rushed to the mound to tend to Bassitt.
Oakland Athletics Say Bassitt Is ‘Conscious and Aware’
The Oakland Athletics public relations staff updated fans with Bassitt’s condition as the pitcher was taken to a Chicago-area hospital.
“Chris Bassitt is conscious and aware,” the Oakland Athletics statement said. “And (he’s) on his way to the hospital. We will provide additional information when possible.”
Dave Stewart, a former star pitcher for the Oakland Athletics, immediately offered his prayers for Bassitt. The MVP of the 1989 World Series said:
“Prayers and great thoughts for Chris Bassitt! The power of God will get him through his recovery! My heart goes out to his wife and family.”
Bassitt was starting against his old team, the White Sox. The 32-year-old made his Major League debut back in 2014 with the team. Chicago traded him to the Oakland Athletics the next year.
He talked about his old team during an interview Monday night.
“Life comes a lot easier when you know you have a job,” Bassitt told reporters. “I still love this organization, the White Sox. I have the utmost respect for them because I know how good of an organization it is. When they have great people, it’s hard to root against an organization like that. Obviously I wanted to beat them in October, did beat them in October, but at the end of the day, you’re always rooting for good people and they have a ton.”
Bassitt was enjoying his best season to date. Last month, he earned a spot in the MLB All-Star game.
“A lot’s been documented on where he’s come from in his career to where he is now,” said Oakland Athletics manager Bob Melvin. “He was pretty emotional after his first shutout, leading the way as a starter the last year and a half. This kind of culminates all that hard work and perseverance.
“To make an All-Star Team’s a special day.”
