The 20 Most Serious Injuries in Baseball History

Ray Chapman is the only Major League player to have lost his life after being hit by a pitch. The fatal blow was delivered by Carl Mays, who hit him in the head on August 16, 1920. Chapman was carried off the field and tragically died the next morning, turning an ordinary regular-season game into one of the darkest days in baseball history. 

Tony Conigliaro seemed destined for a legendary career… until a baseball struck him in the face in 1967, fracturing his cheekbone, dislocating his jaw, and causing damage to the retina of his left eye. Against all odds, he managed to return to the field and even hit 36 home runs in 1970.

Herb Score was one of baseball’s most promising young pitchers when a line drive struck him in the face in 1957. He fortunately survived the injury and returned to the field, but the devastating combination of his eye injury and the subsequent arm problems prevented him from becoming the superstar everyone had predicted he would be. 

The career of Mickey Cochrane, a Hall of Fame catcher, came to an end in 1937 when a pitch from Bump Hadley struck him squarely in the head. He survived a skull fracture that a doctor described in terrifying terms, but he never played another major league game. 

Pete Reiser drove with such intensity and recklessness that it eventually took a heavy toll on him: in 1947, a collision left him unconscious and on the brink of death. It wasn’t even his only serious accident, but the consequences were so severe that his career was repeatedly cut short by serious injuries.

Dickie Thon was coming off an All-Star season when Mike Torrez hit him in the face with a pitch in 1984. The impact fractured the orbital bone around his eye; it also impaired his depth perception and ended his season. Thon returned to play for several years after the incident, but he was never quite the same player again.

Dave Dravecky had already been through a lot in his battle with cancer, but his return to the field took a terrifying turn in 1989. It’s not something you see every day, but his pitching arm snapped clean off during a game. His teammates watched him collapse in excruciating pain, and that injury ended his playing career.

Mike Coolbaugh was just a first-base coach during a Double-A game in 2007 when a line drive struck him in the neck. He succumbed to his injuries at the age of just 35. No one expected such an unexpected tragedy, and the Mike Coolbaugh Award was subsequently established in his honor.

Hughie Jennings was one of the toughest players of the 1890s; one might have thought, therefore, that nothing could stop him. That is, of course, until he was hit in the head by a pitch from Amos Rusie in 1897 and collapsed after the game. Historical accounts of baseball describe him as having remained unconscious for several days; this was one of the first infamous cases of head trauma the sport had ever seen.

When Jason Kendall reached first base in 1999, it seemed like a routine play. No one saw it coming, but his leg twisted awkwardly as he tried to beat the ball after a bunt, and he suffered a serious ankle injury. The fracture and dislocation were so severe that his fibula eventually pierced through his skin. Incredibly, Kendall made a comeback and continued playing for another 11 years.

Ray Fosse suffered one of the most famous collision injuries in baseball history when Pete Rose plowed into him at home plate during the 1970 All-Star Game. What at first appeared to be just a violent collision turned out to be much worse: a dislocated and fractured shoulder that never fully healed. Fosse continued to play, but he later stated that he never regained his former level as a hitter.

A major league debut is supposed to be a joyful occasion, but for Adam Greenberg, it was anything but. He lasted only one pitch before a fastball struck him in the back of the head. He had to leave the field and was subsequently placed on the injured list with a concussion; the injury brought an end to what should have been the happiest moment of his career. 

It was just another minor league game back in 1953 when Don Zimmer was hit in the head by a ball. The injury was so severe that he spent two weeks in a semi-comatose state. He missed the rest of the season due to a skull fracture.

It’s hard to believe that even today’s best hitters have survived such serious injuries, but Giancarlo Stanton himself was hit in the face by a pitch from Mike Fiers traveling at 142 km/h in 2014—an injury that left him bloodied on the field. He suffered multiple facial fractures and dental damage, and the incident ended his season immediately. 

In 2012, Brandon McCarthy was hit in the head by a line drive, resulting in a skull fracture and a concussion. As you can imagine, he underwent emergency surgery and had to end his season early. McCarthy eventually made his return to the major leagues, however.

Hitting your head against the wall is no laughing matter, as Minnie Miñoso demonstrated in 1962 when he fractured his skull. While running after a fly ball for the Cardinals, he crashed into the outfield wall and lost consciousness. Medics carried him off on a stretcher, and that injury limited him to just 39 games that season. 

Philadelphia fans would have loved Aaron Rowand’s incredible catch in 2006 if it hadn’t sent him crashing headfirst into the outfield wall. The poor guy had to leave the field with a bloody, broken nose after one of the most violent defensive plays of that era. 

In 1973, Bobby Valentine was trying to climb the outfield wall when his cleats got caught in the fence. This misstep resulted in a terrible leg fracture that immediately ended his season. Although he did manage to return to the major leagues, this accident remains one of the most serious injuries ever seen in baseball history.

How unlucky can you get? Well, you can always ask Kendrys Morales, the guy who hit a game-winning grand slam in 2010 before breaking his ankle while celebrating at home plate. Luckily, he managed to pull off that heroic final hit, because that bizarre injury cost him the rest of the season.

Tony Saunders suffered one of the most terrifying injuries ever recorded in baseball history. In 1999, he fractured a bone in his arm while attempting to pitch. He had to be carried off the field on a stretcher, and the sight was so harrowing that even seasoned players looked away. Saunders tried to make a comeback—he even won the Tony Conigliaro Award in 2000—but he was never able to re-establish himself in the major leagues.