Home Plate Umpire Forced To Leave Game After Taking A Fastball To The Face

Being a home plate umpire is not without its risks. One of those is getting hit in the face with a baseball, which has got to hurt even with a mask on. Jerry Layne left tonight’s Blue Jays-Orioles game in the third inning after an Aaron Sanchez fastball caught him right on top of the mask.

For mobile readers, here’s a GIF.

After bracing himself on Russell Martin, staggering around a bit, he left the game. Alan Porter took over for Layne.

This is the second time this season Layne has been forced out of a game. He took a foul tip to the jaw in June.

We’ll update this post if more information becomes available.