Umpire Jerry Layne left Friday night’s Reds-Twins game after getting hit in the head by a broken bat.
Layne was hit in the side of the head when Devin Mesoraco’s bat broke on a ground out in the fourth inning and smacked him. Layne went down immediately and was taken off the field to be examined by the Reds’ team doctor.
“There was no cuts or anything like that,” said Randy Marsh, Major League Baseball’s director of umpiring. “(Reds doctor Timothy) Kremchek checked him out. Not sure if there’s a concussion – doesn’t think he was concussed – but he has a very sore area on his face.”
X-rays and an MRI came back normal. A reserve umpire should replace Layne for the final two games of the series. Layne’s lucky to have escaped without serious injury.
