Cubs 3B Alex Bregman exits game vs. Reds after being struck in the face by foul ball

Chicago Cubs third baseman Alex Bregman left Sunday's game against the Cincinnati Reds after taking a foul ball to the face.

The scary incident occurred in the fourth inning, with Cubs first baseman Michael Busch up to bat and Bregman warming up in the on-deck circle. A pitch clipped Busch's bat and hit Bregman in the face.

The collision, and its immediate aftermath, wasn't initially visible on the broadcast. An alternate angle of the moment shows the ball hitting Bregman in the left side of the face, near his eye.

Bregman dropped his bat and his helmet and jogged along the side of the dugout, clutching his face in obvious pain. Chicago staff came over to give the infielder a towel, which Bregman held to his face as he doubled over.

Bregman's face was clearly bleeding as he headed to the locker room, with the infielder appearing to have sustained a laceration on his left cheek, near his left eye.

Busch quickly dropped his bat and squatted to the ground after the accidental contact, then finished the at-bat, hitting a single. Bregman was replaced by Matt Shaw as a pinch hitter.

As the inning ended and the Cubs went back on defense, Shaw stepped in at second base, with Pedro Ramirez moving over to fill Bregman's role at third.

Prior to exiting, Bregman hit an RBI single to put the Cubs on the board in the first inning and drew a walk in the third inning, with the third baseman later scoring. Chicago went on to beat the Reds 9-1 .