A scary scene unfolded at Camden Yards Monday night when Baltimore Orioles manager Craig Albernaz was struck in the face by a line-drive foul ball.
Albernaz left the dugout to receive medical attention, but was able to return later in the game. The details of his condition weren’t immediately clear, but he was able to finish managing the game until it concluded.
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The incident took place in the bottom of the fifth inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Orioles second baseman Jeremiah Jackson hit a line-drive foul ball off a fastball from Diamondbacks starter Ryne Nelson.
The ball lined straight for the Baltimore dugout, where Albernaz was watching from the top step. Albernaz ducked, but not in time. The ball hit him squarely on the right side of his face. Per MLB, the ball was traveling at 70.6 mph.
Members of Baltimore’s staff immediately tended to Albernaz before he left the dugout. But Albernaz wasn’t gone for long.
Albernaz meets Jackson in the dugout for a hug
On Jackson’s next at-bat in the sixth, the Orioles were trailing 7-2 with the bases loaded. Jackson hit a grand slam to left field off reliever Taylor Rashi to cut Arizona’s lead to 7-6.
When Jackson returned to the dugout, Albernaz was there to greet him with a hug.
Albernaz was also sporting a red welt on the right side of his face.
But he remained in the dugout to watch more heroics from Jackson. With Baltimore leading, 8-7 in the bottom of the eighth, Jackson hit another home run.
This time it was a solo shot that extended Baltimore’s lead to the game’s final margin of 9-7.
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Jackson finished the game 3 for 5 at the plate with 2 home runs, 5 RBI and one line-drive foul ball that he’d surely like to have back.
As for Albernaz, he skipped the postgame news conference. Bench coach Donnie Ecker took his place at the podium and provided a health updated on the Orioles manager.
“He’s doing good,” Ecker said. “Just as a precaution right now, he is gonna get it scanned, and we’ll have more information tomorrow.”
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