TLDR: Bregman was standing in the on-deck circle when a foul ball off Michael Busch's bat caught him in the face, and he left bleeding.
- Sun Sep 202:35 PM CT
Foul Territory shows Bregman getting hit in the face by Busch's foul ball
There's no way to see this one coming. Alex Bregman was doing the most routine thing a hitter does — standing in the on-deck circle, waiting his turn — when a foul ball off teammate Michael Busch's bat changed his whole afternoon. Reports out of the Cubs-Reds game had Bregman struck directly in the face, and the reaction from the baseball world was immediate.
Foul Territory@FoulTerritoryTVAlex Bregman was hit in the face by a foul ball off the bat of Michael Busch while on deck in the 4th inning. Matt Shaw came in to PH. We wish Alex a speedy recovery 🙏
Beat writer Brian McTaggart was among the first to flag that Bregman was headed out of the game, and Jomboy Media's account matched it: Bregman started bleeding on contact and had to be helped off. According to MLB.com, the ball came off a half-swing check on a Luis Mey pitch, giving Bregman almost no time to react or protect himself — he took it in the left cheekbone, and per manager Craig Counsell, "it's pretty swollen. It was below the eye."
Matt Shaw came off the bench to pinch hit for Bregman and stayed in the game at second base, keeping Chicago's lineup intact while their third baseman headed for evaluation. Bregman was sent to the hospital for X-rays and a CT scan, a precaution anytime a player takes a shot like that to the face — cuts and swelling are one thing, but ruling out a fracture is the whole reason for the trip.
A few hours later, fans got the update they were waiting for. Bregman posted to his Instagram story to let people know he was doing alright, and the account passed it along.
Foul Territory@FoulTerritoryTVAlex Bregman shares a message with fans after taking a foul ball to the face while on deck 🙏
It's the kind of scary-then-relieving sequence that happens a handful of times a season in baseball — a guy gets drilled by something he never saw coming, gets carted off amid real concern, and then shows up on his own phone a few hours later telling everyone he's fine. Bregman, in his first year with the Cubs after years as a Houston Astros fixture and a World Series champion, has been a steady presence in Chicago's infield all season, which is exactly why an injury scare like this one traveled so fast.
For now it's a wait-and-see situation on how much time, if any, Bregman misses. The Cubs will lean on updates from the medical staff over the next day or two, and until then, the fact that he was well enough to post an Instagram story himself is the best sign fans are going to get.