CLEVELAND, Ohio – You’ll hear people in my business say, “This story is bigger than sports.”
Sometimes we want it to be true, because often sports can be “full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”
That’s a line from Shakespeare’s Macbeth. The set up to the comment is “It’s a tale told by an idiot.”
Being a sportswriter, I sort of cringe at that remark because we all find ourselves writing some very stupid stories over the decades. A veteran baseball writer from the National League recently told me, “I’ve spent 30 years writing about how a guy’s hamstring is doing.”
We both laughed. We both have been there.
What happened on the field
This story is different. This story begins at Progressive Field on September 23.
The Guardians were playing Detroit, a big game as both teams were dueling for a playoff spot. It was the bottom of the sixth inning. There were two runners on base. The Guardians were losing 2-1. David Fry was batting, trying to drive in a run from third base.
Fry squared around to bunt. Detroit’s Tarik Skubal unleashed a 99 mph fastball. Fry leaned in, thinking the pitch would tail away from him. Instead, it smashed him in the face.
Fry hit the dirt, holding his face as blood flowed.
Skubal dropped his cap to the ground. He held his own head. He was upset at himself for hitting Fry, scared that Fry had suffered a major injury. A close up of Skubal’s face on TV seemed to show a few tears.
Fry was carted off the field and taken to the hospital.
A strong case can be made that Skubal is the best pitcher on the planet. He was rattled after hitting Fry, uncorking a wild pitch. The Guardians won the game.
“I know it’s part of the game,” Skubal said at a press conference Monday. “But stuff like that is scary – that’s real-life stuff. People don’t think of our sport as a contact or physical sport as you might think of the NFL. But stuff like that can happen, and it can be life-changing.”
What happened in their hearts
After the game, Skubal wanted to find out about Fry. He sent word to the Cleveland clubhouse.
“He was asking how he could get over to see him,” said Guardians Manager Stephen Vogt. “I was just about to leave and walk out to my car. I did what any other human being would do. That’s to offer someone a ride to where they need to go.”
So the Cleveland manager and the star Detroit pitcher went together to see the injured Cleveland player at hospital.
“I’m not on their team,” said Skubal. “They’re a tight-knit group so it was special for me to be able to go and just see him and apologize.”
As they drove to the hospital, Vogt could see Skubal was hurting for Fry.
“(We) Just kind of talked through the whole situation,” said Skubal. “He was like, ‘You shouldn’t feel bad at all.’ ”
Skubal knew that. He had no intention of hitting Fry. From a baseball sense, you don’t do that with two men on base.
“But you can’t help but feel a little responsible for the situation,” said Skubal.
“I feel just as bad because I’m the one that put on the (bunt) sign,” said Vogt.
Two guys sitting next to each other in a car, worried that Fry could have sustained a major head injury.
Two guys looking at their part in it. Skubal wished his control was better. Vogt wondered why he didn’t just let Fry swing the bat.
In a way, they both comforted each other.
“I’m very thankful for Vogter (Vogt) for allowing me to reach out,” said Skubal. “He understood what was going on with me mentally at that moment.”
What happened to David Fry
The official word on Fry’s injuries was “multiple, minimally displaced, left-sided facial and nasal fractures.” He didn’t need surgery. But he would require about two months to fully recover.
“I feel great, all things considered,” Fry told reporters three days after he was hit by the pitch and released from the hospital. “It’s 100% a God thing. It could have been way, way worse. They just kept saying, ‘An inch up, an inch down, we could have had some real problems.’ But all in all, I feel great.”
Players know how fragile it can be in their business. The same with anyone from law enforcement to those working on road crews to the medical field. There are lots of dangerous jobs.
“Skubal coming was a really cool, class act,” said Fry. “A lot of guys said he was pretty shook up after the fact (of Fry being hit).”
Why did Skubal make a major effort to connect immediately with Fry?
“That’s just what you’re supposed to do in that situation,” said Skubal “It felt like that’s what I should do. I’m very thankful I was able to do that and see he’s doing all right.”
This has been a rough year for Fry. He made the 2024 All-Star team and then injured his elbow late in the season. He played with it, then had Tommy John elbow reconstruction surgery after the 2024 season.
In 2025, he could swing the bat but the man who played the outfield, first base and also was a catcher was limited to being a DH. He has had a general miserable year at the plate.
“The only negative is he can’t play right now,” said Skubal. “That’s something I feel bad about. I obviously want him playing … I (recently) saw a video of him on the field yesterday with the guys. That made me feel a lot better, too.”
As for Skubal and Vogt, they’ll always remember that night and the trip to the hospital.
“We just kind of talked baseball and life, “ said Skubal. “We talk about his kids, his family and kind of what’s going on there – my kids, my family. Just checking in on the human element of the game that gets overlooked a lot of the time when you’re out there competing.”