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