A cameraman who was hit by an errant throw in Wednesday’s New York Yankees vs. Baltimore Orioles game has returned home after suffering an orbital fracture, his network announced Thursday.
In the fifth inning, Orioles rookie shortstop Gunnar Henderson attempted to throw a ball to first base to get the Yankees’ Anthony Volpe out.
However, Henderson’s throw flew over first baseman Ryan O’Hearn’s head and sailed into a camera positioned behind O’Hearn where it appeared to hit Pete Stendel, a cameraman for YES Network, on the head.
Play stopped for about 17 minutes as medical personnel attended to Stendel with TV cameras showing the concern etched on the players’ faces.
After a brief pause, Stendel was carted off the field while raising a peace sign to the crowd at Yankee Stadium as he received a standing ovation. The crowd chanted “MVP” as Stendel was carted out of the stadium.
“Every time that a ball goes over the first baseman or even a foul ball from the hitter, you don’t want to see it going towards a fan. It just happened to be in the wrong spot, and I hope he’s doing all right,” Henderson said after the Orioles beat the Yankees 6-3. “My prayers go out to him. I’m just thankful for the guys that rushed over there to him to help him.”
On Thursday, YES Network said in a tweet: “Pete suffered an orbital fracture and is home resting. He and his family appreciate everyone’s support.”
An update from the network released on Wednesday said that Stendel was “conscious” and “undergoing tests” in hospital after the incident.
“Definitely praying for him. It was good to see him obviously coherent and obviously raising his hand going off,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said following the game.
“But I saw it pretty well right away, and it was very scary. I didn’t see how he fell back, but I knew what could’ve been possible falling back, on top of the impact from the velocity of the ball hitting him … Obviously, a difficult scene there, and just hoping he’s OK.”
