Los Angeles Dodgers pitching prospect Patrick Copen was taken off the field on a stretcher in the third inning Tuesday after getting hit in the face by a line drive in a Single A game at Dow Diamond in Midland.
Copen started for the Dodgers’ Single A affiliate, the Great Lakes Loons, in Tuesday’s Midwest League matchup against the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, a Milwaukee Brewers affiliate.
Copen, the Dodgers’ seventh-round pick in 2023, struck out the side in the second inning. The 6-foot-6 right-hander walked Luis Lara to open the third inning before facing Cooper Pratt, who bunted to Copen for an out in the first inning. But in the third inning, Milwaukee’s No. 2-ranked prospect blasted a line drive that hit Copen in the face.
The former Marshall pitcher was put in a neck brace, but he moved his arms as he was taken off the field on a stretcher. Once the mound was cleaned, play resumed with Christian Romero taking over for the Loons.
After going 5-2 in 13 games at Rancho Cucamonga, Copen was promoted to Great Lakes, where he was 3-2 in eight games heading into Tuesday’s game. In 36 1/3 innings, the No. 20-ranked prospect in the Dodgers system struck out 33 and walked 27 with a 4.21 earned run average.
Great Lakes scored two runs in the bottom of the eighth to claim a 4-2 win. Romero threw five innings, allowing four hits and one earned run while striking out three. Jeisson Cabrera earned the win with a scoreless eighth inning, while Kelvin Ramirez shut out the Timber Rattlers in the ninth for the save.
Josue De Paulo, the Dodgers’ No. 2 prospect, was 2-for-3 with a homer, walk, two RBIs and two runs scored.
