Pirates' Evans leaves on stretcher after collision with teammate Polanco

Pittsburgh Pirates first baseman Phillip Evans was stretchered off the field after colliding with teammate Gregory Polanco while chasing a foul ball in the sixth inning of Saturday's 11-5 loss to the Detroit Tigers.

Evans and Polanco collided up the right-field line, and Polanco's elbow hit Evans in the face. He stayed on the ground for several minutes and left the field on a stretcher with his neck stabilized.

Pirates manager Derek Shelton said postgame that Evans was taken to a hospital for evaluation but didn't have an update on his status, according to Adam Berry of MLB.com. Shelton added that Evans was awake and responsive while being treated on the field.

"They were telling him to be really still, to not move, basically don’t do anything. But he was responding to them. He was conscious," shortstop Kevin Newman said, per Berry. "He could move his fingers. He could feel the things they were doing, so that was all really good stuff to see right off the bat."

Evans joined the Pirates on a minor-league contract this winter after spending all of 2019 in Triple-A. The 27-year-old has been one of the Bucs' best hitters early on this year, slashing .359/.444/.487 with a homer, nine RBIs, six runs scored, and five walks through 11 games.

The play went into the books as an RBI sacrifice fly for Miguel Cabrera, as Polanco - who was shaken up but stayed in the game - held on for the catch while Jonathan Schoop tagged and scored from second base.