Umpire exits after bat hits him on the head
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ANAHEIM -- Home-plate umpire Paul Emmel left Thursday night's game between the Angels and A's at Angel Stadium after the Angels' Jefry Marte lost his grip on his bat during a swing, and the bat hit Emmel on top of his head.
Emmel, who was bleeding on the field, was assisted by the Angels' medical staff before walking off the field. Third-base umpire Quinn Wolcott took over behind the plate and Emmel was taken to a hospital to receive stitches and undergo testing.
Marte, who was pinch-hitting for Gregorio Petit with two outs in the ninth inning in a 5-4 game, popped out to end the game after a brief delay.
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Angels manager Mike Scioscia said Emmel appeared to be OK when he saw him with team doctors postgame.
"It's scary, no doubt," Scioscia said. "These umpires, they don't have a skull cap and then the bat comes flying, it's scary. Unfortunately, that happened tonight."
A's manager Bob Melvin added: "Really scary. I was hoping the towel that we saw had something on it before because it was just blood right away. That's just a scary deal. ... We hope Paul is OK. Paul is a good umpire and a great guy."