Veteran MLB umpire Hunter Wendelstedt was involved in a scary situation during Wednesday’s game between the New York Mets and the Minnesota Twins. The first base umpire was on the end of a line drive that struck him on the head during the seventh inning of the game.
Louis Varland’s fastball was struck by Tyrone Taylor in the top of the seventh inning with the ball travelling towards Hunter Wendelstedt at first base. Although Wendelstedt tried to take evasive actions, it was too late as the ball struck him on the head.
Wendelstedt fell to the ground immediately and the Twins’ training staff rushed to check on the veteran umpire. Wendelstedt left the game after the incident and was sent for further scans.
“Hunter is undergoing additional tests in Minneapolis, and we are encouraged that he was in good spirits when he was in touch with our medical staff. We will continue to monitor his status,” a statement from MLB read.
Chaitanya Prakash is an editor who covers US Sports at Sportskeeda. His first brush with sportswriting was in 2012 when the greatest football manager of all time, Sir Alex Ferguson, bid farewell to the beautiful game.
Although having started out professionally as a cricket writer in 2022, Chaitanya’s curiosity and indiscriminate interest in all sports in general eventually introduced him to America’s favorite pastime.
While Chaitanya’s favorite player from the current crop is the dynamic Venezuelan Ronald Acuna Jr., his all-time favorite, however, is Pedro Martinez, for his self-belief and consistency. He also rates Jose Bautista’s iconic bat flip in 2015 as his favorite moment in baseball history.
Chaitanya specializes in reporting on technical aspects of the game or analyzing patterns behind specific plays. He also likes pondering over players’ self-assessments following the conclusion of a game as it helps him get an idea of how they think about the sport in general.
When not cheering for his favorites across sports, Chaitanya likes being transported to the past through a good war documentary or a historical documentary in general.
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