Rockies top prospect Brendan Rodgers was hit in the head by a pitch during the fifth inning of today’s Yard Goats game, the first of two games the team is set to play. The ball appeared to hit him either directly on or near the ear of his batting helmet. Trainers attended to Rodgers for a couple of minutes before he made his way to the dugout under his own power. He was clearly in an unsettled state though, and that could be either due to injury or shock.
The nature and severity of the consequences of the hit by pitch aren’t clear. Rodgers might be completely fine, but any time a player is hit in the head with a pitch, it’s cause for concern. The good news is that it looks like the ball caught Rodgers’s helmet and not his face.
A spectator at the game captured the hit by pitch and posted two videos to twitter:
Rockies top prospect @Broddddd3 hit in the head during game against Portland. Exited the game wobbling off the field. @Ken_Rosenthal pic.twitter.com/J9gkzVRqR0
— Aaron Bogin ⚾️ (@aamays5) July 1, 2017
2nd half of video pic.twitter.com/RRq1hCEEOh
— Aaron Bogin ⚾️ (@aamays5) July 1, 2017
Rodgers has been playing for the Yard Goats since June 22. He was tabbed to play in this year’s Futures Game in Miami. Whether or not he plays in the Futures Game is less important than his overall health going forward. We’ll update this post once there’s more information.