Chicago Cubs third baseman Matt Shaw was hit in the head by a foul popup that he misplayed during Tuesday night's game in St. Louis.
It happened in the bottom of the fourth with no one on and nobody out as the Cubs held a 5-4 lead. On the 2-0 count, Cardinals batter Nolan Gorman hit a high popup into foul territory on the third base side. Shaw ran towards the short wall on the edge of the field, then leaped into the netting in a desperate attempt to snag the ball.
Unfortunately, not only Shaw was his valiant attempt unsuccessful, but also came away with a bit of pain as the ball came down directly on top of his head. To add insult to injury, Gorman hit the next pitch into the center field seats for a home run to tie the game at 5-5.
Cubs 3B has a foul pop hit him in the head as he goes into the netting, the next pitch is a Cardinals HR pic.twitter.com/etDZY5MNwG
— CJ Fogler 🫡 (@cjzero) June 25, 2025
We have seen MLB players hit in the head with popups before, and it is always a bit shocking because you don't expect it. In Shaw's case, this was clearly a tough one to catch because it was drifting away from him until the last minute. You could tell he didn't have a good look at it because he turned his head away as he dove for the ball and hoped for the best.
Fortunately, Shaw was not seriously hurt and stayed in the game. However, the Cardinals scored three more runs in the inning to take an 8-5 lead.
[@cjzero]
Moonlighting as a blogger to pursue my interest and enjoyment of sports. Former high school and Division I athlete (now a "retired" family man) that loves watching and discussing all sports. Follow me on Twitter (@HoldoutSports).
