Scary moment: Marlins pitcher Daniel Castano hit in forehead by line drive

CINCINNATI — Miami Marlins pitcher Daniel Castano suffered a mild concussion after he was hit in the head by a line drive during the first inning of Thursday’s baseball game in Cincinnati.

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Castano, 27, was struck in the forehead by a line drive off the bat of the Reds’ Donovan Solano in the first inning of Miami’s 7-6 victory, ESPN reported.

The left-hander had given up back-to-back, one-out doubles to Brandon Drury and Tommy Pham and hit Joey Votto with a pitch, according to the Miami Herald. Solano then rocketed a line drive back through the middle that was clocked at 104.3 mph and struck Castano, the newspaper reported.

The ball caromed into the air and was caught on the fly by third baseman Joey Wendle.

The ball hit the bill of his cap and ricocheted off the crown, manager Don Mattingly told reporters after the game.

“Scary right away,” Mattingly said. “That’s your biggest fear.”

The team said Castano has a mild concussion and a bruised forehead and a CT scan was normal, according to The Associated Press.

“I’m not sure what happened,’’ Castano said after the game. “I was down for a second. I was a little out of it. When I woke up, I asked, ‘What happened?’ I’m much better now. I’m a little bit tired, but I’ll be all right.

“It just kind of went black for a second to be honest with you,” Castano added, according to the Herald. “I kind of came to and everyone was around me. I think the first thing I asked was ‘Did we get the out?’

“I’m a little out of it right now, but definitely better.”

The comeback line drive was reminiscent of the line drive that injured Cleveland pitcher Herb Score on May 7, 1957. Score was an up-and-coming pitcher, but Gil McDougald’s smash up the middle hit Score in the face, broke his nose and caused vision problems, according to Bleacher Report. He was never the same pitcher and retired in 1962.

Hall of Famer Mike Mussina missed nearly a month of the 1998 season after he was hit by a line drive.

On June 15, 2013, Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Alex Cobb suffered a mild concussion when he was hit in the head by a line drive off the bat of Kansas City Royals first baseman Eric Hosmer.

On Thursday, Castano was down for about 90 seconds and left the field under his own power, ESPN reported. Castano came over and talked to the pitcher for a moment.

“It is really awful to see that happen to anyone,” Reds manager David Bell told reporters. “I’ve seen it happen before. I had a conversation to see that everything was OK. It is just a major relief to hear that. It’s very scary for everyone involved, certainly for their pitcher and their home team and our team. You almost want to stop playing the game. When he was kneeling and walked off on his own, we all felt a little better.’’

“That’s terrifying,” Reds starter Graham Ashcraft said. “You never want to see a player hurt like that. I was waiting to see blood coming out. I thought he got hit in (the) cheek or his eye bone or something. I am hoping he’s OK. My prayers go out to him and his family. I hope he can come back and make his next start.’’

The Marlins rallied with three runs in the ninth inning to overcome a 5-4 deficit.

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