Ouch! Scary moment home plate umpire in Yankees-Cardinals game is crushed in the helmet by a 99mph fast ball…and must be held up by catcher Yadier Molino as he recovers
- MLB umpire Ed Hickox was viciously beaten in the helmet by a baseball
- Cardinals pitcher Ryan Hensley’s 99mph pitch bounced off in the 60-year-old
- Hickox also received a lot of criticism for his arbitration during the match
- The Yankees suffered their fifth consecutive loss with a 12-9 loss in Missouri
- Meanwhile, St. Louis extended their winning streak to seven games
Ever wake up feeling like you’ve been hit by a 99mph fastball?
Home plate umpire Ed Hickox will be tomorrow. The 60-year-old was already having a rough day at the office in St. Louis, and then reality literally hit.
At the start of the eighth inning, with St. Louis leading the Yankees 9-8, Cardinals pitcher Ryan Hensley delivered a 100mph bomb that bounced off New York’s Jose Trevino’s bat, right into the grill from Hickox.
Umpire Ed Hickox got more than he bargained for at the Yankees-Cardinals game on Sunday
The 60-year-old umpire (pictured right arguing with Aaron Boone) was hit by a fast ball
The old baseball ump was exposed and immediately shaken by the blow, staggering before St. Louis catcher Yadier Molino intervened and prevented him from falling.
Incredibly, the Florida native went on and ended the game as the Cards piled up for three more runs to extend New York’s recent woes.
This isn’t the first time Hickox has been leveled by a stray baseball during his 17-year MLB career.
Several broken facial bones and concussions have come and gone as he served as home plate umpire. Hickox suffered a serious concussion and left ear injury during another Yankees game, this time in April 2009.
Hickox called this pitch a strike much to the ire of Yankees skipper Boone and many followed the match on social media
Oddly enough, the former Eagle Scout has previously been hit by a 99mph fast ball, which incidentally was also a foul ball.
During an LA Dodgers game in July 2013, Hickox was struck in the face by the ball. He bravely finished the game but was replaced the next day due to a suspected concussion.
During the game on Sunday, the home plate umpire was criticized on social media for a series of particularly puzzling phone calls.
Social media was outraged by some of Hickox’s statements during the Cardinals’ 12-9 win
The win completed a St. Louis sweep, becoming the first NL team to win a three-game sweep from the Yanks in 15 years.
Since interleague play began in 1977, the Yankees have been swept by NL teams only four times.
New York has a chance Monday night to arrest their slide in Seattle, while St. Louis will try to extend their seven-game win streak in Colorado on Tuesday.