One exit begat another in the first inning of Thursday's game between the Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals.
Cardinals catcher Willson Contreras had to exit the game after three batters when Cubs outfielder Ian Happ hit him hard in the head with his backswing on a swing-and-miss. Contreras immediately went down in pain and was bleeding from the right side of his head as Cardinals trainers escorted him out of the game.
Notably, Contreras and Happ shared a quick embrace as he walked off the field. The Cardinals, who replaced him with Andrew Knizner behind the plate, later announced he left the game with a scalp laceration and is day-to-day.