Shaken but otherwise OK after being hit in the nose by a 97 mph Brandon Morrow fastball, Mariners outfielder Casper Wells joined an ailing group of Seattle Mariners on their trip to Tampa Bay and Cleveland.
The pitch, in the sixth inning of Wednesday night’s game against the Toronto Blue Jays
at Safeco Field, hit the tip of Wells’ nose. X-rays showed nothing was broken.
Still, it was a scary moment that even Morrow felt badly about. Thursday morning, Morrow used Twitter (he’s at @2Morrow23) to send this message to Wells (@upstateballer):
“Casper, sorry about the pitch that got away tonight. I’m glad it didn’t get you too bad. Enjoy Seattle, it’s a great city.”
Morrow was a Mariner until they traded him after the 2009 season to the Blue Jays. Wells became a Mariner on July 30 in a trade with the Detroit Tigers.
He’d hit home runs in four straight games but struck out twice against Morrow before getting hit by the pitch.
“I felt like my nose fell off pretty much,” Wells told reporters. “I couldn’t see, which was scary. My eyes got all watered up and I couldn’t see what was going on. It was scary more than anything, coming right at my face and I couldn’t get out of the way of it. I have a headache, my nose feels humongous, but I think I’ll be all right.”
Wells is the latest Mariner to suffer injuries ranging from cuts and bruises to more serious problems that require time on the disabled list.
First baseman Justin Smoak is on the DL after suffering a broken nose and cheekbone last Friday when a ground ball took a high hop and hit him in the face. He flew with the team to Tampa but hasn’t been able to take part in baseball-related workouts since the injury.
Shortstop Brendan Ryan (sprained left shoulder) is eligible to come off the DL today but continues to struggle with range of motion. Third baseman Chone Figgins remains on the DL because of a strained right hip flexor. Second baseman Dustin Ackley has a sore leg that has limited his running.
Of note
Mike Carp goes into tonight’s game with a 17-game hitting streak. For those who dare to dream, Carp would run it to a record 57 straight if he gets a hit in each of the Mariners’ final 40 games. … Right-handed reliever Dan Cortes hasn’t allowed a run in his past three outings (covering five innings). He’s 0-1 with a 2.25 ERA in eight innings of relief this season. … Rays manager Joe Maddon said he would wait until after tonight’s game to decide who will start Sunday against the Mariners. It’ll be either right-hander James Shields (11-101, 2.83) or right-hander Jeff Niemann (8-4, 3.29). … Left-handed pitcher Luke French cleared waivers and the Mariners outrighted him to Class AAA Tacoma on Friday. French, 8-8 with a 6.12 ERA in 23 starts with Tacoma, was designated for assignment Aug. 13 when the Mariners added DH Wily Mo Pena to the major league roster.
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