Brewers pitcher nailed by 106 mph liner, exits after one pitch

Milwaukee Brewers starter Dustin May was pulled from Wednesday night’s game against the New York Mets after just one pitch, when a 106 mph line drive off the bat of center fielder A.J. Ewing struck him in the shoulder area.

May, 28, had thrown a 96 mph fastball to Ewing in the bottom of the first inning at Citi Field when the ball came back at him even harder. The comebacker deflected off May to third baseman David Hamilton, who threw to first to retire Ewing.

Trainers rushed to check on May, who bent over in visible discomfort before attempting a few warmup pitches. He was ultimately removed from the game with a bruised right scapula. X-rays taken afterward came back negative, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

“When I threw it, it felt fine,” May said. “But sitting there for a couple seconds after — threw the next one and it didn’t feel right.”

May said he felt reassured once tests ruled out structural damage. Brewers manager Pat Murphy turned to the bullpen for the remaining 26 outs, joking afterward that it was the plan all along. Reliever Robert Gasser threw 5 1/3 innings of one-run ball in his first career relief appearance, and Grant Anderson and Bryse Wilson combined for 3 1/3 shutout innings to close it out.

Milwaukee acquired May from the St. Louis Cardinals at the trade deadline. He is 6-8 with a 4.56 ERA in 25 starts this season. The Brewers, at 82-51 — the best record in Major League Baseball — face the Mets in the series finale Thursday at 7:10 p.m. ET.