Jays’ House hit in head by comebacker
DUNEDIN, FLA.— From flat on his back, strapped to a spinal board, T.J. House raised his right hand in a thumbs-up gesture to the crowd.
The stunned silence at Joker Marchant Stadium in Lakeland, Fla., cracked open with a rousing ovation from the 9,000-plus in attendance.
House, at the very least, was conscious and presumably could hear the tribute.
The left-handed pitcher looking for a job with the Blue Jays took a comebacker off the bat of Detroit’s John Hicks in the bottom of the ninth Friday. The hard liner struck him on the back of the head, just above his right ear. The ball caromed some 30 feet into the air before being caught by catcher Mike Ohlman, according to those who witnessed the scene.
House went down immediately as trainers from both teams rushed onto the field.
“Before (Ohlman) even caught it, people were signaling for the trainers to come out,” said Nick Brzezinki, who works for the Blue Jays’ Class-A Lansing Lugnuts and was watching from along the first-base line. “You could tell the infielders were shaken by what they saw.”
He lay prone on the ground, on his stomach, for more than 15 minutes before he was gently turned and carefully strapped on to the board. Firefighters were first to arrive on scene, followed by an ambulance that later whisked him away to a nearby hospital.
There was no immediate word on House’s condition but he was moving his legs when transferred to the stretcher. The game, which the Jays were leading 6-2, was called.
Manager John Gibbons told reporters that House was talking and had feeling in his limbs.
“I couldn’t get near him. They were working on him. It’s scary, you know. He was talking, he could feel everything, so hopefully that’s a good sign.’’
Tigers manager Brad Ausmus said afterwards it was one of the most frightening situations he’d ever seen.
“When I went out there, his face was in his glove, there was blood on his face, blood in the glove — everything.’’
Drafted in 2008 by the Indians, the 27-year-old House signed a minorleague contract over the winter and was brought to the major-league camp as a non-roster invitee. He burst on the scene three years ago, winning five games with the Indians before an inflamed shoulder put him on the disabled list for most of 2015. When House resurfaced in the minors, he was also sporting spectacles to correct astigmatism in one eye.
House had a 3.38 ERA in four appearances with the Indians last year.
Head and facial injuries to pitchers are fortunately rare occurrences. It’s been estimated that a batted ball hits a pitcher in the head one or two times per season — with roughly 750,000 pitches thrown every year.