Minnesota Twins shortstop Kyle Farmer will be spending several unexpected hours in a dentist chair on Wednesday evening ... after he took a 92 MPH fastball to the face earlier in the day.
The scene was terrifying ... in the bottom of the fourth inning of the Twins' game against the White Sox at Target Field in Minneapolis, a heater got away from Chicago ace Lucas Giolito -- and it ended up nailing Farmer right in the mouth.
A scary moment in Target Field after Kyle Farmer was hit in the face by a 92mph fastball. He was up on his own after and was taken out of the game🙌🏻⚾️#MinnesotaTwins #MLB
— Sportskeeda Baseball (@sportskeeda_mlb) April 12, 2023
pic.twitter.com/6jGLN4TTe5
Video from the game's broadcast shows the 32-year-old immediately crumpled to the ground in pain ... as trainers raced out to tend to him.
Somehow, though, he avoided a broken jaw -- news that Minnesota manager Rocco Baldelli called a bit of "a miracle."
"Thank God we got news that was better than what we were expecting," Baldelli told reporters after the game.
Minnesota skipper Rocco Baldelli shares updates on Kyle Farmer and Byron Buxton after the #MNTwins series win over the White Sox. pic.twitter.com/68qZiv2Z0s
— Bally Sports North (@BallySportsNOR) April 12, 2023
But, Farmer didn't come out unscathed ... Baldelli said his player will need surgery "to realign his teeth and fix a major laceration of the lower jaw."
Farmer had played nearly every day for the Twins this year, batting .226 with a home run and five RBI. It's unclear how much time he'll miss while recovering from the mouth injury.
He did get at least some morale boost Wednesday afternoon following the HBP -- as the Twins ended up beating Chicago, 3-1, while he was getting checked out by docs.