Guardians' David Fry hospitalized after being hit in face by pitch during crucial win over Tigers

CLEVELAND (AP) — For a frightening moment, the AL Central race hardly mattered.

Guardians designated hitter David Fry was expected to be hospitalized overnight after he was hit in the face by a pitch from Detroit's Tarik Skubal in the sixth inning of Cleveland's 5-2 win over the Tigers on Tuesday night, a victory that deadlocked the division.

Fry squared around to try to bunt a 99 mph fastball from Skubal and the pitch struck him in the nose and mouth area. As Fry collapsed in the batter's box and immediately grabbed his bloodied face, a visibly shaken Skubal threw off his glove and cap as Cleveland manager Stephen Vogt and trainers rushed onto the field.

Fry laid in the dirt for several minutes before being slowly helped to his feet. He gave a thumbs-up signal as he sat up and was driven off in a cart.

The Guardians said Fry was being transported from Lutheran Medical Center to the Cleveland Clinic Main Campus for further testing and observation. The team said it would update Fry's condition Wednesday morning.

“It was straight to the face,” Vogt said, describing the impact on Fry that shook everyone inside Progressive Field. “We’re all thinking about David and his family right now. Obviously, we’re glad he is OK, but obviously it’s a really scary moment.”

Skubal, the reigning AL Cy Young Award winner, paced around the infield as Fry was being assisted. Following the game, Skubal, who allowed just two hits through the first five innings, said seeing Fry in distress was difficult.

“Really tough,” said the left-hander. “I’ve already reached out to him. I’m sure his phone is blowing up. I just want to make sure he’s all right. Obviously, he seemed like he was OK coming off the field and hopefully it stays that way.

"I know sometimes with those things that can change. So hopefully he’s all right. I look forward to hopefully at some point tonight or (Wednesday) morning getting a text from him and making sure he’s all good because there’s things that are bigger than the game and the health of him is more important than a baseball game.”

That's how Guardians left fielder Steven Kwan felt after watching Fry, an All-Star in 2024 who underwent offseason elbow surgery and didn't join the team until late May, go down.

“Definitely really scary,” Kwan said. “For David to even try something like that (bunt), that’s just who he is. Selfless kind of guy, and especially in a position like that, he’s a tough guy. Thankfully he had some humor when he came up, but you don’t want to see a guy that’s been with you pretty much the whole year.

“Obviously energy-wise, just who he is as a teammate, he’s meant so much to us as a team. It’s really scary, but thankfully he had some humor coming off the field, so hopefully we get some good news.”

Following the incident, Skubal threw a wild pitch to George Valera, who replaced Fry, allowing Cleveland to score. Skubal also had an error — he inexplicably tried to make a blind throw to first between his legs — and was also called for a balk in the sixth inning as the Guardians rallied for three runs to take a 3-2 lead without hitting a ball out of the infield.

With its 16th win in 18 games, Cleveland caught Detroit atop the division after trailing the Tigers by 15 1/2 games on July 8. The Guardians were still 12 1/2 games back on Aug. 25, but have gone 17-5 in September.

The Tigers, meanwhile, have dropped seven straight and 10 of 11.

“I feel like we’ve been this way for a couple of series now,” catcher Dillon Dingler said. "It’s not quite pressing but we definitely feel some of the pressure and we’ve got to mitigate it. We’ve got to eliminate it. We’ve still got to find ways to stay loose, focus in and hone in on what we need to do and go out there and do it.”

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Cleveland Guardians' Brayan Rocchio (4) and left fielder Steven Kwan, right, celebrate after the Guardians defeated the Detroit Tigers in ia baseball game in Cleveland, Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

CORRECTION CORRECTS HITTING ON THE FACE BY PITCH - Cleveland Guardians manager Stephen Vogt, left, attends to David Fry after Fry was hit in the face by a pitch in the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Detroit Tigers in Cleveland, Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

Cleveland Guardians' David Fry is hit in the face with his own bunt in the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Detroit Tigers in Cleveland, Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

Cleveland Guardians' David Fry falls back after being hit in the face with his own bunt in the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Detroit Tigers in Cleveland, Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

Cleveland Guardians' David Fry falls back after being hit in the face with his own bunt in the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Detroit Tigers in Cleveland, Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

Cleveland Guardians manager Stephen Vogt, left, attends to David Fry after Fry was hit in the face with his own bunt in the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Detroit Tigers in Cleveland, Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

HENDERSON, Nev. (AP) — New Las Vegas Raiders coach Klint Kubiak wasted little time in choosing his offensive and defensive coordinators since being hired less than a week ago.

Raiders defensive line coach and run game coordinator Rob Leonard was officially elevated to defensive coordinator on Sunday, and Seahawks quarterbacks coach Andrew Janocko will follow Kubiak from Seattle to be the offensive coordinator.

Kubiak did what the two previous Las Vegas coaches did in selecting a defensive coordinator — look within the staff. Leonard was the defensive line coach the past three seasons and added the title of run game coordinator in 2025 under then-coach Pete Carroll.

Carroll and his predecessor, Antonio Pierce, kept Patrick Graham in charge of the defense upon becoming the Raiders' coach. Graham now is the defensive coordinator with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

In retaining Leonard, Kubiak also could be looking for a way to mend ties with star pass rusher Maxx Crosby. Relations between Crosby and the Raiders became frayed when the organization placed him on injured reserve with a knee injury with two games left last season. Crosby left the team facility upon receiving the news.

Crosby, who underwent surgery last month, said during a recent appearance on “The Herd with Colin Cowherd" that reports he wanted to be traded came from other people and not him. But Crosby, wearing Raiders gear and speaking from the team facility, also did not deny such talk.

As for the 38-year-old Leonard, the Raiders allowed 3.9 yards per rush last season, tied for second in the NFL. They also were third in tackles for loss with 105.

The Raiders were in the middle of the pack in run defense in allowing 116.8 yards per game. But the defense often got worn down because Las Vegas was last in the field in average time of possession at 28:02.

The 37-year-old Janocko will receive a promotion in the move to the Raiders. He and Kubiak were on the Seahawks' staff, with Kubiak serving as the play caller for the Seahawks' Super Bowl-winning team.

Kubiak plans to still call plays, but made a point at his introductory news conference on Tuesday that it's not a one-man operation.

“I’ve never called the game by myself,” Kubiak said. “That’s something we do as a coaching staff together. We plan together. We communicate on game day together — quarterback coach, pass game coordinator, run game coordinator.”

Janocko worked directly with Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold this past season.

Darnold completed 67.7% of his passes for 4,048 yards with 25 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. Drafted third overall by the New York Jets in 2018, Darnold was considered a bust until leading Minnesota to a 14-win season in 2024. Then came another 14-win season with the Seahawks that culminated with Darnold hoisting the Lombardi Trophy.

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FILE - Seattle Seahawks quarterbacks coach Andrew Janocko looks on from the sideline during the first half of an NFL football game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Oct. 12, 2025, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack, File)

Las Vegas Raiders new head coach Klint Kubiak speaks during an introductory news conference at the NFL football team's training facility Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2026, in Henderson, Nev. (AP Photo/Ian Maule)

FILE - Las Vegas Raiders defensive line coach Rob Leonard reviews a play on an NFL Copilot by Microsoft during the first half of an NFL football game against the Houston Texans, Dec. 21, 2025, in Houston. (AP Photo/Maria Lysaker, File)