Astros' Colin Moran suffers facial fracture after being hit by foul ball

Houston Astros third baseman Colin Moran suffered a facial fracture after fouling a pitch off his own face during Saturday’s game against the Orioles.

The graphic injury happened during the sixth inning when Moran got a piece of side-armer Darren O’Day’s first-pitch slider. With the pitch getting in deep on Moran’s hands, the contact only served to redirect the baseball into his face where it caught him near the left eye and cheek area.

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Moran suffered a cut below his left eye that immediately started bleeding. There was visible discoloration around his eye as well, but the extent of his injuries were not known until Sunday morning.

At first Moran attempted to get to his feet and walk off the field under his own power, but was unable to maintain his balance. He was seated again and remained on the field until a cart was brought out to take him away.

While much of the focus was on Moran in the aftermath of his injury, it turned out that at-bat led to more chaos and would ultimately turn the entire game around. All-Star Marwin Gonzalez would step in for Moran, and within a couple pitches would lose his bat into the crowd. A young fan was struck and later spotted with an ice pack to his head. No serious injury was reported.

Later still in the battle, Gonzalez would launch a three-run homer that gave Houston the lead for good in the 8-4 victory. The homer was Houston’s first pinch-hit blast this season.

It was an at-bat that ran the gambit of emotions, but in the bigger picture everyone is hoping Colin Moran will make a quick and complete recovery, allowing him to contribute further to the Astros.

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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at bigleaguestew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!

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