Umpire Kerwin Danley had to leave last night’s Reds-Rockies game after being hit in the mask with a pitch. He says he’s OK, but the story about it reveals just how much abuse umpires take:
While you don’t see a stretcher take an umpire out very often, I bet Danley is not some anomaly when it comes to getting beat up behind the plate. You have to figure those guys have more bruises, sore spots and old knots than anyone besides catchers.
Danley has suffered several head injuries during his 16-year career.
In 2008, he was knocked unconscious when Dodgers catcher Russell Martin missed a pitch by Brad Penny, allowing the ball to hit Danley on the jaw. He missed more than a month.
A year later, he was taken off the field in Toronto on a stretcher after the barrel of Hank Blalock’s broken bat hit him flush on the mask. He was released from a hospital the next day.
While you don’t see a stretcher take an umpire out very often, I bet Danley is not some anomaly when it comes to getting beat up behind the plate. You have to figure those guys have more bruises, sore spots and old knots than anyone besides catchers.
