SAN DIEGO — During Tuesday night’s matchup, San Diego Padres’ rookie pitcher Ryan Bergert faced an unexpected incident when he took a powerful hit to his pitching elbow. The ball, a swift 103-mph line drive, was launched by Washington Nationals’ Jacob Young. This event forced Bergert out of the game in the fourth inning.
As the play unfolded, Bergert briefly crouched in pain, clutching his arm tightly to his body. Despite the discomfort, he quickly regained composure and managed to grab the baseball that had landed near the pitching rubber. Attempting a swift recovery, he threw the ball to first base, but Young adeptly beat the throw, securing a single for his team.
A trainer was summoned to inspect Bergert’s injury. After a brief evaluation, the decision was made for Bergert to leave the game. His place on the mound was taken by Adrian Morejon. Before this abrupt exit, Bergert had been making a promising start to his major league career. This was his fifth starting appearance since making his MLB debut as a reliever on April 26. Bergert had so far impressed with a 1-0 record and an impressive 1.88 ERA.
The sequence that led to Bergert’s substitution allowed Young to circle the bases, eventually coming home on a ground ball by James Wood. This contributed to the Nationals extending their lead to 3-0 in the game.