Oakland Athletics pitcher Brandon McCarthy, who underwent surgery after being struck in the head by a line drive Wednesday afternoon, was alert and seemed to be showing progress as of Thursday night, according to a press release from the team.
In its statement Thursday, the A’s said that the 29-year-old righty was “alert, awake and resting comfortably, and has shown signs of improvement today.”
McCarthy was hit on the right side the head with a batted ball during Wednesday’s game against the Los Angeles Angels at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. Amazingly, he was conscious after he was hit by Erick Aybar’s line drive.
After the incident occurred in the fourth inning, McCarthy was taken to Alta Bates Summit Medical Center, and a CT scan there showed that he had an epidural hemorrhage, brain contusion and skull fracture.
Later that evening, “he was transferred to a nearby hospital, where a neurosurgeon performed a second CT scan and clinical examination, and surgery was recommended to relieve pressure from McCarthy’s head,” according to the team’s press release.
The two-hour surgery was performed around 9 p.m. Wednesday, with the procedure “including the evacuation of an epidural hemorrhage and stabilization of the skull fracture,” the team said.
Another CT scan was done at 12:30 p.m. Thursday, and “demonstrated improvement from his previous scan, and the epidural hemorrhage had subsided,” the team said. “McCarthy is currently resting in the critical care unit of the hospital.”
An epidural hemorrhage is a pool of blood between the skull and the skin between the brain and the bone, according to USA Today, which said it was the same injury that led to actress Natasha Richardson’s death.
“Our first concern is Brandon’s health, and we are heartened to learn he has shown progress in his recovery after surgery,” Billy Beane, the A’s vice president and general manager, said in a statement. “We are glad to report he is stable, awake and alert. The team will provide further updates as they become available in the coming days. We would ask members of the media to respect the privacy of Brandon and his family during this time. As we travel to Seattle today, Brandon remains in everyone’s thoughts as we wish him a speedy recovery.”
Brandon McCarthy is conscious and doing well. Doctors at Summit Hospital want him to stay overnight for further observation. He will not accompany the team on the charter flight to Seattle tomorrow afternoon.
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