ARLINGTON, Texas — Rangers second baseman Marcus Semien stayed in the game after a 94.6 mph fastball hit the ear flap of his helmet while he was batting in the third inning against the Atlanta Braves on Saturday night. He scored right after that, then seven innings later ended it with a walk-off single.
“What a warrior effort,” Rangers manager Bruce Bochy said. “I mean, getting hit like that, there’s not too many guys that would have stayed in the game. You can’t take him out. Yeah, he’s just hardheaded.”
Semien turned his head down and avoided a direct shot to the face when he was unable to get out of the way of Grant Holmes‘ pitch. Semien then twisted his body while grabbing at the left side of his face as he stumbled back and then laid flat on his back.
“Initially, I felt impact just on the side of my face,” Semien said. “If it got me without a helmet, it probably would have been way more painful. So eventually I got up and I was fine.”
After the teams traded runs in the ninth inning and Atlanta intentionally walked Corey Seager to start the bottom of the 10th, Semien’s shot up the middle off Enyel De Los Santos (3-3) gave the Rangers a 6-5 win. They won their fifth game in a row and got their fourth series victory in a row.
Semien getting mobbed by his excited teammates at the end was a vast contrast to the scary scene in the third, when third-base coach Tony Beasley immediately ran toward Semien while athletic trainer Matt Lucero and Bochy came out of the Rangers’ dugout.
After staying down for a few moments while talking to Lucero, Semien sat up and eventually walked slowly to first base. After an extended conversation, including several more questions from the trainer, Semien stayed in the game even as he rubbed his left cheek.
“I didn’t think there was any chance he’d stay in the game. … I just assumed that he was coming out the game,” Bochy said.
Holmes appeared distraught while Semien was down and got a visit from pitching coach Rick Kranitz as the Rangers were tending to their second baseman. Holmes was unavailable after the game, when the Braves said he was headed to the injured list with elbow tightness.
When play resumed, Holmes went to a 3-0 count on Adolis Garcia, the next batter, including a wild pitch that allowed Seager and Semien to advance a base. Both scored on García’s single to right for a 4-2 lead.
Semien took the field when the Rangers went back on defense in the fourth and batted again in the bottom of the inning. That at-bat ended with him slamming his helmet after his hard shot up the middle deflected off Holmes and to second baseman Ozzie Albies for what turned into an inning-ending out with the bases loaded after another walk by Seager.
“Whenever they walk Corey, I want to come through,” Semien said. “I was just mad that ball didn’t kick further and, you know, bases loaded. But I was just pretty angry to get hit in the face and then not get any hits. … I was happy to at least get one hit.”
The one that won the game.
“Just fitting that he came up there in that situation,” Bochy said.
“It’s going to take a lot for him to come out of the lineup, and I’m sure glad he’s in it,” said Shawn Armstrong, the fourth Rangers pitcher, who worked the final two innings. “It’s a lot of fun playing with him.”
