Photo: Rob Leiter/MLB Photos/Getty
The incident occurred in the bottom of the third inning of the Rangers' game against the Baltimore Orioles, according to the MLB team’s Twitter account.
After undergoing a medical evaluation, the MLB shared on its website, the 25-year-old athletecleared concussion protocolsand received six stitches on the right side of his face. While there was no structural damage to his face nor jaw, the MLB added that Smith will continue to be evaluated over the next few days and that he is “unlikely to require an IL (injured list) stint.”
Rangers managerBruce Bochy gave his account of the incidentduring an appearance on Tuesday’sThe K&C Masterpiecepodcast, expressing that Smith had taken “a pretty good blow there to the lower jaw.”
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“He hangs in there so well against left-handers, and the ball just stayed in on him,” continued Bochy. “I saw all the blood when I got out there, and we’re all praying for him at that time. It’s always a scary situation. I think it was about 88 mph.”
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According to the Associated Press, Smith reiterated those feelings while being spotted in the Rangers clubhouse Tuesday afternoon, telling reporters, “Ifeel pretty good, actually. I slept good. It’s not as bad as I thought it was going to be. Really no pain or anything like that.”
source: people.com
