Toronto Blue Jays right fielder Jesus Sanchez left Sunday’s game against the Baltimore Orioles in the top of the sixth inning after being hit with a ball that came from the right field stands as a result of a “misunderstanding.”
Sanchez was removed from the game with a right wrist contusion after being hit with a ball thrown by a young fan during a stoppage in play. Both Sanchez and manager John Schneider described the incident as a misunderstanding.
“He was kind of talking with, I think it was a 12-year-old kid, I was just told. Talking with a kid, going back and forth, I think, in a playful manner. Like almost like ‘Hey, let’s play catch.’ I think that the kid took it literally and hit [Sanchez] with the ball. Not ideal,” manager John Schneider told reporters after the game.
“First time I’ve seen that. X-rays were negative on his right wrist, so we’ll check him out but he was pretty sore. And surprised, as were we. Balls shouldn’t be coming into the field of play.”
Sanchez described the incident himself through an interpreter.
“It was a misunderstanding. I mean, I wasn’t trying to play catch right there,” Sanchez told reporters via Jacob Calvin Meyer of the Baltimore Sun.
“I just looked at them and they thought maybe I wanted them to throw the ball back to me. But like I said, it was a misunderstanding completely and it is what it is.”
Jesús Sánchez also described the incident with the young fan who struck him with a ball as a miscommunication.
— Jacob Calvin Meyer (@jcalvinmeyer) May 31, 2026
Sánchez said he wasn’t trying to play catch with the fan.
“It was a misunderstanding. I wasn’t trying to play catch.” pic.twitter.com/1c68kmRMwi
Sanchez departed the field holding his right arm alongside the training staff and was replaced by Yohendrick Pinango in right.
The team officially said Sanchez suffered a right wrist contusion soon after.
According to Meyer, an Orioles spokesperson said the fan was ejected from the ballpark.
“We have identified the fan and removed them from the ballpark while we conduct a thorough investigation,” the Orioles said via Meyer.
The 28-year-old Sanchez has been one of Toronto’s most productive hitters of late, slashing .400/.419/.625 with 10 RBI over his last 15 games.
The Blue Jays trailed 6-0 at the time of the incident and went on to lose 9-5 to fall back to two games below the .500 mark. They will be off on Monday before beginning a series in Atlanta against the Braves on Tuesday evening.
