Rays third baseman Amed Rosario had quite the scare during Saturday’s game against the Pirates.
Rosario exited the game in the first inning after being hit in the face by a 99 mph fastball from Pirates rookie Jared Jones, though Bally Sports’ Tricia Whitaker reported on the broadcast that Rosario, at the moment, appeared to emerge “on the positive end of things” and described the situation as “much better than it could’ve been.”
“I am told that Rosario has facial lacerations due to that hit by pitch,” Whitaker said on the broadcast during the fourth inning, “but it does not sound like anything is broken — so that is good news.”
Manager Kevin Cash told reporters postgame that Rosario received a “stitch or two” on the lip, according to the Associated Press.
Rosario said the ball hit his arm and C-Flap helmet, though he didn’t know the order, while also telling reporters that “luckily it wasn’t anything worse.”
Jones’ third pitch to Rosario was high and inside.
He was the second batter Jones hit in the top of the first inning, as the rookie — who entered Saturday with 22 walks and two hit batters in 79 innings — also hit designated hitter Brandon Lowe in the side earlier in the frame.
Rosario’s helmet popped off his head following the pitch from Jones, and he immediately grabbed the area of his face that was hit.
He was eventually escorted off the field by members of the Rays training staff after taking a few minutes to compose himself outside of the batter’s box.
Richie Palacios pinch-ran for Rosario and took over at second base the next inning.
José Caballero, who had started the game at second, slid over to third to fill in for Rosario’s spot.
Rosario, who started his career with the Mets before eventually playing for the Guardians and Dodgers, signed a one-year deal with the Rays in February and has hit .301 across 59 games — entering Saturday — while playing second base, third base, shortstop and right field for Tampa Bay.
Across four years with the Mets in the majors from 2017-20, Rosario hit .268 with a .705 OPS.
The Rays lost to the Pirates, 4-3, despite scoring a run in the ninth and having the tying run in scoring position.
Pittsburgh scored three runs in the third against Tampa Bay starter Zach Eflin, and Jones recovered from the shaky first frame to toss seven innings and earn the win.
