- The Washington Times - Thursday, April 29, 2021

Bryce Harper was taken to the hospital Wednesday night after he was hit in the face with a pitch during the Philadelphia Phillies’ 5-3 win against the St. Louis Cardinals, but Harper said he avoided any major injuries.

In the sixth inning, Cardinals reliever Génesis Cabrera plunked Harper with a 97-mph sinker that caught Harper on the face. The former Washington Nationals star left the field on his own, but the team transported him to the hospital for testing, which included a CT scan.

Late Wednesday night, Harper announced in a video posted to Instagram that he “feels good.”

“Everything feels good. Everything came back good, the CT, all of that kind of stuff,” Harper said. “The face is still there, so we’re all good. See you all soon.”

Cabrera struggled with his control in that sixth inning, hitting Didi Gregorius in the ribs with a 94.5-mph fastball with his next pitch. St. Louis manager Mike Shildt said he would’ve taken out Cabrera after the 24-year-old left-hander hit Harper if not for MLB’s three-batter minimum rule.

“I want to again apologize for all the actions that happened,” Cabrera said postgame (via MLB.com). “Especially to Harper, I really wish him the best and I hope he has a speedy recovery with whatever it is that happened and then be able to come back to baseball activities. The game kind of got away from me at that point. And I’m really sorry for everything that happened today. None of it was intentional. And again, I’m sorry.”

• Andy Kostka can be reached at akostka@washingtontimes.com.

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