St. Louis Cardinals prospect Daniel Poncedeleon was involved in a scary situation Tuesday evening as his Memphis Redbirds took on the Iowa Cubs in Triple-A game down in the minors.
It happened after Iowa first baseman Victor Cartini hit a line drive Poncedeleon’s way in the second inning, ultimately leading to the line drive hitting the pitcher in the head.
Poncedeleon was eventually carried off the field in a stretcher. And it’s now being reported that he had to undergo brain surgery as a way to relieve pressure.
“We’re just praying for that to go well,” Cardinals Mike Matheny said, via ESPN . “He’s still not great. There’s still a lot of uncertainty as to how that’s going to progress. I don’t have all the technical terms for you. Very serious.”
Poncedeleon, 25, was a ninth-round pick of the Cardinals back in 2014. He entered the season ranked as one of the organization’s top-30 prospects and was pitching to a 2.17 ERA in six starts at Memphis prior to the injury.
Though, the larger concern here is about the pitcher’s long-term health and how he recovers from brain surgery.