Rockies Pitcher Ryan Feltner Hit In Head By Line Drive, Seriously Injured

Colorado Rockies pitcher Ryan Feltner suffered a skull fracture and concussion after being hit in the head by a line drive during his team's 7-4 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies Saturday (May 13) night.

"Overall, he's fine," Colorado manager Bud Black said before Sunday's 4-0 win to end the series via ESPN. "I think the feeling is that it could have been worse."

Feltner (2-3, 5.86 ERA) was placed on the 15-day injured list, with Black predicting he was "probably on the longer end of that" when asked if the 26-year-old would be out for days, weeks or months. The accident took place in the second inning after Phillies outfielder Nick Castellanos hit a 92.7 MPH slider back to the mound.

Feltner was hit on the back right side of his head and fell to the ground, lying on his stomach before being aided by two Rockies athletic training staff members. The pitcher was able to get back to his feet and walked off the field with assistance from the two trainers.

Black described Feltner as "still fairly lucid" after the game on Saturday, having texted his manager, teammates, parents and team medical staff. The pitcher is expected to return to the team on Monday (May 15) or Tuesday (May 16), but will still need to go through a recovery process.

"He just needs time to let the fractures heal and the concussion to diminish," Black said via ESPN. "From everything that I've been told here this morning, things are looking up."