Marlins' prospect Del Orbe suffers fractured skull

Right-hander Ramon Del Orbe, a Marlins prospect pitching for the team's Class A Greensboro affiliate, was hospitalized with two skull fractures on Tuesday night after he was struck by a line drive.

According to a report from MiLB.com, Del Orbe was hit in the head by a liner off the bat of West Virginia's Josh Bell in the sixth inning of the Grasshoppers' 5-1 win in Charleston, W.Va. Del Orbe collapsed immediately, the Charleston Daily Mail reported.

"The Marlins family is deeply concerned for Ramon Del Orbe and the injuries he sustained while pitching last night for the Greensboro Grasshoppers," Marty Scott, the Marlins' vice president of player development, said in a statement.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with Ramon and his family during this time."

According to the MiLB report, the Grasshoppers confirmed Wednesday morning that Del Orbe was still in intensive care at Charleston Area Medical Center. A team representative said surgery may still be required, but doctors were waiting to evaluate him on Wednesday. The same official described it as "not a good injury."

Both teams' training staffs rushed onto the field to tend to Del Orbe, who reportedly did not lose consciousness, the report said. The 21-year-old prospect was carried off the field on a stretcher and taken to CAMC, which is across the street from where the game was being played.

Del Orbe was signed out of the Dominican Republic as a non-drafted free agent in July 2008, and has gone 5-8 with a 4.75 ERA in 23 starts this season.