Baltimore Orioles left fielder Colton Cowser struck out on a pitch that hit him in the hand during Wednesday's Game 2 of their Wild Card playoff series against Kansas City.
It happened in the bottom of the fifth inning with the bases loaded and one out and the game tied at 1-1. On the 1-2 pitch, Royals pitcher Angel Zerpa, who had just come into the game, threw a 97 mph sinker high and inside. Cowser swung and missed at the pitch, which hit him in the left hand as he went around, sending him down to the ground.
This led to confusion as Orioles runner Ramon Urias ran home from third base. However, home plate umpire Ben May called time and indicated that Cowser was out after swinging for strike three.
Colton Cowser struck out with the bases loaded on a pitch that hit him pic.twitter.com/LHZHX7emRK
— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) October 2, 2024
We have seen some strange situations revolving around HBP calls this season, including reversed calls and missed calls, this season. In this case, for Cowser this was just the most unfortunate circumstance, not to mention painful.
Cowser had to come out of the game and was replaced by Heston Kjerstad. Zerpa struck out the next Orioles batter to get out of the inning. The Royals went on to beat the Orioles 2-1 to win the playoff series 2-0, making it a disappointing end to the Orioles season.
Moonlighting as a blogger to pursue my interest and enjoyment of sports. Former high school and Division I athlete (now a "retired" family man) that loves watching and discussing all sports. Follow me on Twitter (@HoldoutSports) and like Holdout Sports on Facebook.
