PITTSBURGH — Anthony Misiewicz landed on the concussion injured list Saturday but appears to have avoided the worst after taking a 100.6 mph line drive to the head on Friday.
The Yankees reliever was discharged from a local hospital Friday night after undergoing tests and returned to the team hotel.
The 28-year-old Misiewicz was experiencing concussion-related symptoms on Saturday and still has more tests ahead of him, “but all things considered, he’s doing pretty well,” according to manager Aaron Boone.
“That’s about as scary as it gets,” Boone said Saturday at PNC Park. “I saw Anthony last night when he got back from the hospital. I was able to stop by his room and see him. He was in good spirits, looked and sounded pretty good.”
The scorching liner off the bat of Pirates infielder Ji Hwan Bae struck Misiewicz near the left ear and ricocheted into right field.
He was quickly bleeding as he fell to the ground but remained conscious and alert in the aftermath before getting to his feet and then being carted off the field.
Anthony Misiewicz #54 of the New York Yankees leaves the field after being hit by a ball in the 6th inning during the game between the New York Yankees and the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park on Friday, September 15, 2023.MLB Photos via Getty Images Misiewicz, who was making his third appearance with the Yankees since being called up from Triple-A last weekend, joked with teammates as he left the field, “I thought I threw a pretty good curveball.”
“That’s Mis’ to a T,” said fellow reliever Nick Ramirez, who first became good friends with Misiewicz last year in the Mariners’ organization. “He’s always making jokes. If he’s not making noise, you know something’s wrong.”
The plan was for Misiewicz to come to PNC Park later on Saturday, then see the Pirates’ team doctor on Sunday before flying back to New York with the Yankees and undergoing another battery of tests with their team doctor.
“All in all, feeling pretty well,” Boone said.
With Misiewicz going on the seven-day concussion IL, the Yankees activated Ian Hamilton off the 15-day IL to take his spot in the bullpen.
Everson Pereira was out of the lineup Saturday for a third straight game.
Everson Pereira was out of the lineup Saturday for a third straight game.Getty Images Boone said the rookie left fielder’s leg was “bugging him” after slipping on the stairs in Boston earlier this week.
“He’s in a little bit of day-to-day mode,” Boone said. “But he should be alright.”
Pereira has also been struggling at the plate, batting 10-for-70 (.143) with a .426 OPS and 31 strikeouts in his first 21 games as a big leaguer.
“Look, a lot of kids fighting for playing time too,” Boone said. “But he’ll get back in there.”
Austin Wells hit cleanup on Saturday while Boone dropped Giancarlo Stanton to the fifth spot.
Boone said he just wanted to spread out his left-handed hitters instead of backloading them in the lineup, which is why Wells was bumped up to Stanton’s normal spot.
