Opening Pitch

Take us out to the ball game, right? Baseball’s supposed to be a fun, family-friendly sport that people don’t often associate with career-ending injuries—which is why nasty run-ins always catch fans off guard. Come with us as we explore some of the gnarliest things that ever happened on the diamond. 

All-Pro Reels from District of Columbia, USA on Wikimedia

1. Ray Chapman’s Fatal Beaning

Ray Chapman is the only Major League player to lose his life after being hit by a pitch. The blow came when Carl Mays struck him in the head on August 16, 1920. Chapman was taken from the field and tragically lost his life the next morning, turning an ordinary regular-season game into one of baseball’s darkest days. 

MamaGeek at English Wikipedia on Wikimedia

2. Tony Conigliaro’s Shattered Stardom

Tony Conigliaro looked like a future all-time great…right before a pitch hit him in the face in 1967 and fractured his cheekbone, dislocated his jaw, and damaged the retina in his left eye. Amazingly, he somehow made it back and even hit 36 home runs in 1970.

Unknown author on Wikimedia

3. Herb Score’s Career-Changing Line Drive

Herb Score was one of the most electric young pitchers in baseball when a line drive smashed into his face in 1957. He thankfully survived the injury and returned to pitch, but the devastating combination of the eye injury and later arm trouble kept him from ever quite becoming the superstar people thought he’d be. 

Cleveland Indians / MLB on Wikimedia

4. Mickey Cochrane’s Fractured Skull

Hall of Fame catcher Mickey Cochrane saw his playing career end when a pitch from Bump Hadley hit him square in the head in 1937. He survived a fractured skull that one doctor described in terrifying terms, but he never played another big league game. 

National Photo Company Collection on Wikimedia

5. Pete Reiser and the Wall

Pete Reiser played with such reckless intensity that it eventually caught up with him, and one 1947 collision left him unconscious and looking close to death. That wasn’t even his only major crash, but the aftermath was a career constantly interrupted by serious injuries.

Unknown on Wikimedia

6. Dickie Thon’s Eye Injury

Dickie Thon was coming off an All-Star season when Mike Torrez hit him in the face with a pitch in 1984. The collision broke the orbital bone around his eye—it also wrecked his depth perception and wiped out the rest of that season. Thon returned to play for years afterward, but he was never quite the same player.

Stephen V. Russell on Wikimedia

7. Dave Dravecky’s Arm Break

Dave Dravecky had already gone through enough battling cancer, but his comeback took a horrifying turn in 1989. It’s not something you see every day, but his pitching arm snapped during a game. Teammates watched him collapse in agony, and the injury ended his playing career.

San Diego Padres on Wikimedia

8. Mike Coolbaugh’s Fatal Coaching Injury

Mike Coolbaugh was merely coaching first base in a Double-A game in 2007 when a line drive struck him in the neck. He lost his life to the injury at just 35 years old. Nobody expected such a random tragedy, and the Mike Coolbaugh Award was later created in his honor.

Mick Haupt on Unsplash

9. Hughie Jennings Getting Beaned 

Hughie Jennings was one of the toughest players of the 1890s, so you wouldn’t think anything would take him out. Until, of course, he was hit in the head by a pitch from Amos Rusie in 1897 and collapsed after the game. Baseball history reports describe him as being unconscious for days, and it’s one of the earliest infamous head injuries the sport ever saw.

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10. Jason Kendall’s Ankle Injury

When Jason Kendall hit first base in 1999, it looked like a routine play. Little did anyone expect, his leg bent awkwardly while trying to beat out a bunt, and he destroyed his ankle. The fracture and dislocation were so severe that his fibula actually poked through the skin. Amazingly, Kendall returned and played for another 11 years.

Googie Man on en.wikipedia on Wikimedia

11. Ray Fosse’s All-Star Game Collision

Ray Fosse suffered one of baseball’s most famous collision injuries when Pete Rose barreled into him at home plate in the 1970 All-Star Game. What first seemed like a hard hit turned out to be way worse than that: a fractured and separated shoulder that never healed properly. Fosse kept playing, but he later said he was never the same hitter again.

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12. Adam Greenberg’s Debut Nightmare

Major league debuts are supposed to be fun, but it was anything but for Adam Greenberg’s. He lasted one pitch before a fastball struck him in the back of the head. He left the game, was later placed on the disabled list with a concussion, and the injury interrupted what should have been the happiest moment of his career. 

Andrew Lynch on Wikimedia

13. Don Zimmer’s Fractured Skull

It was an ordinary minor league game in 1953—and then Don Zimmer took a pitch to the head. The injury was so severe that he spent two weeks in a semi-coma. He missed the rest of the season with a fractured skull.

Los Angeles Dodgers on Wikimedia

14. Giancarlo Stanton’s Facial Fractures

It’s hard to believe that even today’s hottest hitters survived insane injuries, but Giancarlo Stanton was once hit in the face by an 88 mph pitch from Mike Fiers in 2014, an injury that left him bloodied on the field. He suffered multiple facial fractures and dental damage, and the ordeal ended his season on the spot. 

Johnmaxmena2 on Wikimedia

15. Brandon McCarthy’s Skull Fracture

In 2012, Brandon McCarthy took a line drive directly to the head, suffering a skull fracture and a brain contusion. As you can imagine, he underwent emergency surgery and was done for the season. McCarthy did, however, eventually return to the majors.

r w h on Wikimedia

16. Minnie Miñoso’s Skull Fracture 

Crashing into the wall is no joke, and Minnie Miñoso’s fractured skull proved that point in 1962. He crashed into the outfield wall chasing a fly ball for the Cardinals and was knocked unconscious. Medics carried him off on a stretcher, and the injury limited him to only 39 games that season. 

Bob Lerner, Look magazine on Wikimedia

17. Aaron Rowand’s Face-First Collision

Philadelphia fans would’ve loved Aaron Rowand’s incredible 2006 catch if it didn’t send him face-first into the outfield wall. The poor guy left the game with a bloodied, broken nose after one of the most violent defensive plays of that era. 

Cathy T from Washington, DC area on Wikimedia

18. Bobby Valentine’s Compound Leg Fracture

Bobby Valentine was just trying to climb the outfield wall in 1973 when his spikes got caught in the fencing. The misstep caused a horrifying leg break that ended his season immediately. He did make it back to the majors, but the accident remained one of the ugliest injuries baseball ever saw.

Keith Allison on Flickr on Wikimedia

19. Kendrys Morales Breaking His Leg 

How much bad luck can one person have? Well, you can always ask Kendrys Morales, the guy who hit a walk-off grand slam in 2010 before breaking his ankle during the celebration at home plate. It’s a good thing he landed one last heroic hit because that freak injury cost him the rest of the season.

Keith Allison from Hanover, MD, USA on Wikimedia

20. Tony Saunders’ Arm Snapping Mid-Pitch

Tony Saunders suffered one of the most disturbing pitching injuries ever recorded in baseball history. In 1999, a bone in his arm broke as he tried to pitch. He was carted off the field, and the visual alone was bad enough to make even veteran players look away. Saunders tried to come back—and even won the Tony Conigliaro Award in 2000—but he never established himself again in the majors.

Mike Bowman on Unsplash