WATCH: MLB umpire Nick Mahrley gets hit by splintered bat from Giancarlo Stanton
MLB umpire Nick Mahrley had to be carried out of the game between the New York Yankees and the Colorado Rockies after suffering a concussion in a freakish accident on Sunday afternoon. The umpire was working behind home plate when the broken bat of Giancarlo Stanton hit him squarely in the face and knocked him down to the ground.
A short video of the incident was uploaded on X by the Talkin' Yanks podcast from Jomboy Media.
This Sunday, the Yankees were hosting the Rockies for the final clash of their three-game series. The home team was ahead 3-4 in the bottom of the fifth inning when Giancarlo Stanton came to the plate with runners on first and second with one out. Austin Gomber was on the mound for the visitors, while umpire Nick Mahrley was stationed behind catcher Drew Romo.
On a 1-1 count, Gomber delivered an 80-mph low kucklecurve inside the plate to Stanton, who got slightly jammed when he swung and made contact with the ball. Even though the pitch did not carry great velocity, it broke the bat right at the top of the handle. The ball popped up to the vacant area in shallow left field for a blooped single to load the bases for the Yankees.
Meanwhile, the broken end of the bat came behind home plate as the hitter completed his swing and struck umpire Nick Mahrley forcefully on the right side of his head. Thankfully, for Mahrley, the grill on the face protector blocked the barrel from smashing directly into his jaw. Nevertheless, he still took a powerful blow to the back of his head from the top end of the broken bat.
Aaron Judge offers support for injured MLB umpire Nick Mahrley
Being the closest one to the home-plate umpire, Rockies catcher Drew Romo was the first person to react to the incident before the players, officials, and medical personnel closed in. Nick Mahrley was brought to his knees by the powerful blow, and he was later stretchered off the game with a neck brace for further examination.
“We’re definitely all hoping the best for Nick,” the Yankees captain Aaron Judge said after the game which ended 10-3 in their favor. “They’ve got a tough job back there. It’s not easy; you’ve 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."
“You’re trying to do your best, and [to] get squared upon the side of the head with a bat, it’s tough. To see him get carted off wasn’t easy.”
Major League Baseball has announced that Nick Mahrley will be going through further testing over the next few days and has been rested for the first series of the upcoming week.