Mets' Jared Young carted off field after colliding with Nolan McLean during play at first base

Young gave a thumbs up as he was taken off the field and the team said he had feeling in his extremities

Sep 17, 2026 at 9:10 pm ET • 1 min read

A scary moment took place in the top of the sixth inning during the Phillies-Mets bout at Citi Field on Thursday night. A weak grounder to first base off the bat of Justin Crawford brought Mets pitcher Nolan McLean and first baseman Jared Young together and a bit of miscommunication caused a really ugly and scary collision. While both fielders scrambled for the ball, McLean's knee appeared to strike Young's head, sending the first baseman to the ground. 

Young lay on the field for an extended period of time afterward while being tended to by medical personnel, and he was eventually carted off the field on a stretcher with his head and neck stabilized.

Young was taken to the hospital for further examination, but had feeling in his extremities, the Mets announced.

The 31-year-old Young appeared in 22 games for the Cubs in 2022-23 before splitting time in 2024 between South Korea's KBO and Triple-A stateside. The Mets acquired him in time for the 2025 season and he had success in Triple-A and made a brief appearance in the majors. This season, he's been productive, hitting .266/.330/.429 with 17 doubles, nine home runs, 39 RBI and 46 runs in 342 plate appearances. Thanks to Pete Alonso leaving in free agency and free-agent signing Jorge Polanco spending most of the year on the IL, Young has found himself getting regular playing time.

Young has been one of the pleasant surprises for the Mets in an otherwise incredibly disappointing season. President of baseball operations David Stearns revamped the roster in the offseason after the team fell apart down the stretch and missed the 2025 playoffs, only to watch them suffer a 12-game losing streak in April en route to being 36-53 by the fourth of July, a stretch that saw manager Carlos Mendoza fired. Interim manager Andy Green is headed back to the front office next year and the Mets will once again try to fix their roster over the winter.