Giancarlo Stanton Removed On Stretcher After Fastball To The Face

Giancarlo Stanton left tonight's Marlins-Brewers game in the fifth inning after a Mike Fiers fastball hit him square in the face. A stretcher and cart was necessary to get the Miami slugger off the field.

Stanton—who is expected to receive the Marlins' biggest contract offer in history—has been the National League's biggest slugger this season, leading the NL in homers, RBI, and numerous other categories.

A brawl ensued after Fiers's immediate next pitch also hit Reed Johnson (who assumed Stanton's batting count, as umpire Jeff Kellogg declared the Stanton HBP a swinging strike). Kellogg declared this pitch a strike, too, ending the inning:

We'll update this post as information on Stanton's condition becomes available.

[ Better Know Jeff Kellogg.]

[FS Florida]

Update (1:27 a.m.): This sounds awful.