Rays minor league pitcher Tyler Zombro was hospitalized Thursday night after a line drive struck him in the head.
The frightening injury occurred in the eighth inning of a Triple-A International League game between Durham and Norfolk in Durham, N.C. Zombro, who was pitching for Durham, was hit by a line off the bat of Norfolk's Brett Cumberland. He fell to the ground and then began convulsing as teammates and medical personnel rushed to his aid.
Zombro was taken from the field on a stretcher and transported by ambulance to Duke University Hospital in Durham. The Rays announced that he was in stable condition.
A statement from @RaysBaseball on the condition of @T_Zombro24: pic.twitter.com/iMi7ve9ZBi
— Durham Bulls (@DurhamBulls) June 4, 2021
Players on the field were shaken by what happened.
Grim scene in Durham right now. Tyler Zombro, pitching for the Bulls, went down hard after a comebacker to the face. He was shaking uncontrollably before taken off the field via stretcher a few minutes later. Stunned silence.
— MiLB Tonight (@MilbTonight) June 4, 2021
Update: game has been called pic.twitter.com/9P32SGHArv
The game was suspended immediately after Zombro was injured.
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Zombro, 26, was making his ninth appearance of the season for Durham, all in relief. The Rays signed him as an undrafted free agent out of George Mason in 2017.
