CINCINNATI -- Cubs third baseman Alex Bregman sustained multiple facial fractures after being struck by a foul ball on Sunday, but he will not undergo surgery and could return for the postseason, according to a report from ESPN's Jeff Passan on Monday. The team has not confirmed the news.
With two outs in the fourth inning of Sunday’s 9-1 victory against the Reds at Great American Ball Park, Michael Busch was at the plate when he half-swung at a pitch thrown by Reds right-hander Luis Mey. Busch fouled off the pitch and the ball hit Bregman while he was in the on-deck circle. Bregman immediately went into the dugout, and he was replaced by pinch-hitter Matt Shaw.
“You never want to see that on the ball field. You can’t control any of that. It happened so fast,” Busch said. “Any time [the ball] hits the head area, it’s scary. … You focus on the game, but it’s tough.”
Bregman was sent to the hospital for X-rays and a CT scan.
The third baseman posted a selfie on Instagram showing his swollen eye and captioned it: "Thanks for all the messages yall. I'll be back." He followed up with another update on Monday morning from back in Chicago.
“He had a cut under his eye," Cubs manager Craig Counsell said Sunday. "He was bleeding from his nose a little bit. It’s pretty swollen. It was below the eye. I honestly thought it hit him in the nose. I thought he had a broken nose, but I knew it hit him somewhere in the face. It’s just an unfortunate accident. I’m hoping and praying he is all right."
While Bregman is out, the Cubs could use Shaw or switch-hitting rookie Pedro Ramírez at the hot corner. Shaw, a Gold Glove finalist at third base last season, has a .749 OPS through 73 games this season. Ramírez, who debuted on May 23, has a .743 OPS through 75 games.