Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Jesús Sánchez was injured during Sunday's game against the Baltimore Orioles after a young fan threw a baseball at him in right field at Camden Yards.
He was diagnosed with a right wrist contusion, and X-rays returned negative for a fracture, the team announced.
Video from the Peacock broadcast showed a projectile hitting Sánchez moments after he seemed to be exchanging words with someone - later revealed to be a child - in the stands while flapping his glove in their direction.
Jesús Sánchez was forced to leave today's game after being hit by a baseball thrown by a fan in the stands.
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) May 31, 2026
(via @Sportsnet) pic.twitter.com/kLPoSdQ105
Sánchez immediately dropped his glove in pain after being hit and left the field upon being checked by trainers. A baseball could be seen sitting on the grass beside Sánchez while he was being examined.
Jesús Sánchez exits the game with an apparent right arm injury.
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) May 31, 2026
Sánchez appears to have been struck by a ball thrown from the stands by a fan. pic.twitter.com/xhfZcXAkXa
An Orioles security officer removed the young fan and his guardian from the ballpark, according to Jacob Calvin Meyer of the Baltimore Sun.
Both Sánchez and Blue Jays manager John Schneider corroborated what fans sitting in the outfield told Meyer about the incident. The youngster thought Sánchez was inviting him to play catch during a mound visit, then threw the ball after Sánchez turned back toward the infield. Sánchez, speaking through an interpreter, called it a "misunderstanding," according to Sportsnet's Arden Zwelling.
"Never know what you're going to see at the ballpark," Schneider said postgame, according to Sportsnet's David Singh. "He was talking with I think it was a 12-year-old kid, I was just told. Talking with the kid, kind of going back and forth. I think in a playful manner, like almost, 'Hey, let's play catch.' And I (think) that the kid took it literally and hit Sánchez with the ball."
Sanchez said his wrist "hurts a little bit but thank God there's no fracture. I'll be all right."
— Arden Zwelling (@ArdenZwelling) May 31, 2026
He also said it was an isolated event and not an ongoing back-and-forth with the fans: "It was a big surprise, of course. I wasn't imagining that was going to happen."
"A ball shouldn't be coming into the field of play anywhere. I'm sure the kid feels bad. I'm assuming there was no ill intent there," Schneider added, per Zwelling.
The 28-year-old Sánchez is hitting .287/.324/.461 with six home runs and 28 RBIs in 57 games this season.
Baltimore went on to beat the Blue Jays 9-5, securing a split of the four-game series.
