Mets' J.D. Martinez accidentally hits Cardinals' Willson Contreras with bat, breaks arm
May 8 (UPI) -- New York Mets designated hitter J.D. Martinez swung his bat and accidentally hit Willson Contreras, breaking his arm and sending the St. Louis Cardinals catcher to the injured list.
The Cardinals announced Wednesday that Contreras was headed to the 10-day injured list because of a left arm fracture. They also recalled catcher Pedro Pages from Triple-A Memphis.
The injury occurred in the top of the second inning of the Mets' 7-5 win over the Cardinals on Tuesday in St. Louis. Contreras told reporters after the game that he expects to undergo surgery on the arm and he will likely need six to eight weeks to recover.
"Once I tried to do some motion stuff, there was some cracking in [the arm] and I knew it was bad," Contreras said, according to MLB.com.
Willson Contreras will leave this game after taking a J.D. Martinez swing to his left arm. pic.twitter.com/mJfiqOBf4t— Bally Sports Midwest (@BallySportsMW) May 8, 2024
Left fielder D.J. Stewart led off the second inning and flew out to Cardinals left fielder Brendan Donovan, bringing Martinez to the plate.
Cardinals starter Miles Mikolas started the exchange with two-consecutive balls. Martinez fouled off the next offering. Mikolas then tossed in an 85.2-mph slider.
Contreras reached out his gloved left hand to catch the pitch at the same time Martinez swung. The bat made contact with Contreras' forearm.
The Cardinals' catcher, who was called for catcher's interference, screamed in pain before falling to the ground. He was then tended to by a trainer.
He was replaced by Ivan Herrera for the remainder of the game.
Contreras went 1 for 1 with a run scored. He is hitting .280 with six home runs and 12 RBIs this season.
Mikolas allowed nine hits and six runs over four innings to drop to 2-5 this season. Herrera went 2 for 4 in relief of Contreras. Mets starter Jose Butto allowed five hits and three runs over five innings to earn his first win this season.
Outfielder Brandon Nimmo and first baseman Pete Alonso each homered for the Mets.
The Cardinals (15-21) will host the Mets (18-18) in the series finale at 1:15 p.m. EDT Wednesday in St. Louis.
