MLB Twitter reacts to video of John Sterling being hit by foul ball: "If this was any active Yankee player they would be on the 60 day IL"

Legendary announcer John Sterling was a popular man on MLB Twitter after Saturday's game between New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox. The 84-year-old was drilled by a foul ball off the bat of Justin Turner during the ninth inning of the contest. Yankees won the game 3-1.

Fans were impressed with Sterling's professionalism, as the veteran announcer quickly regained his composure to resume calling the play. The original clip that went viral only featured the audio, however the newly surfaced video has left many stunned.

While the incident was enveloped by an element of humor initially when the news broke, the new clip showed the hit might have been very nasty. Here's what the Twitteratti had to say:

"If this was any active Yankee player they would be on the 60 day IL"

"Damn, that really could have hurt him"

"If this happened to Stanton he would be out for at least a month"

"They gonna mandate announcers wear helmets."

"Wow - didn’t think it was coming in this hot"

"Holy fuck he got fucking rocked. I feel bad for laughing now, thought it was like off the arm or something"

"Oh wow. That could have been really bad. Glad he’s okay."

"I feel bad for laughing at this....glad he's ok though"

"Damn that was a hard shot to the head. Glad he is okay"

"Head injuries can manifest the selves several days after the incident. I hope someone is keeping an eye on John."

John Sterling not a regular presence at Yankees broadcast booth in 2023

The veteran announcer has been plagued by illness and poor health this season. As a result, Sterling ended up missing around 23 from the first 61 games played by Yankees this season, including the team's series against Padres. Recently, in an interview with NY Post, he assured the readers regarding his swift comeback to the broadcast booth:

“Don’t worry about me, you can tell your readers, I’ll be back soon"

However, he ended up stealing the show in a Yankees-Red Sox series amid claims of dwindling ferocity between the rivals.