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VIDEO: Diamondbacks catcher Chris Iannetta taken to hospital after being hit in face by pitch

Posted at 10:56 PM, May 12, 2017
and last updated 2017-05-13 19:03:21-04

UPDATE (4 p.m. Saturday): The D-backs reported Chris Iannetta suffered a nose fracture and a couple of fractured teeth, and he received stitches in his upper lip. "He's doing OK... He said he could play tonight if he needed to," D-backs manager Torey Lovullo said.

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The Arizona Diamondbacks won their third straight game Friday night, but it came at a price for Chris Iannetta.

The catcher left the game after being hit in the face with a pitch in the seventh inning of the D-backs' 11-4 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates at Chase Field. He walked off the field on his own power but was later taken to a hospital for evaluation.

There has been some bad blood between the D-backs and Pirates in recent years, and the Pirates have been first or second in Major League Baseball in hit batters in each of the last four seasons. But Johnny Barbato, the Pirates pitcher who struck Iannetta, said the throw was unintentional.

D-backs manager Torey Lovullo agreed.

The 34-year-old Iannetta has played for four MLB teams during his pro career that began in 2006. The D-backs signed him to a one-year, $1.5 million contract in January. He's hitting .220 this season, and he hit his third home run of the year earlier in Friday's game.

Iannetta is the co-founder of Jack Winery, a business he started with former Los Angeles Angels teammate Vernon Wells in 2012.

The D-backs have won each of the first two games of their current four-game set with the Pirates. The two teams will face off again Saturday night.