In a story that highlights basic occupational hazards that exist in sports, Tampa Bay Rays player Hunter Bigge was taken to hospital after being hit by a ball travelling at 168 kph while in the dugout at a Major League Baseball game.

Bigge, 27, was struck on the side of the face when the Baltimore Orioles' Adley Rutschman accidentally hit the ball into the home dugout at Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, Florida.

Bigge, who was not playing in the game as he recovers from a muscle strain, had been leaning on a rail in front of the dugout. Emergency medical staff rushed to help him and he was placed in a neck brace and taken away on a stretcher before going to hospital to be assessed.

The game was halted for 10 minutes while Bigge was treated but he gave a thumbs-up to the crowd as he was taken away. Rays manager Kevin Cash said that Bigge remained conscious throughout and was talking to the medical staff while he received treatment.

"Certainly you feel for Hunter and his wife. I can't imagine what she and he were going through," he said. Scary for everybody, none more than them," he told Reuters.

Orioles boss Tony Mansolino added: "It's really scary. It's terrifying. I mean, we all sit in these dugouts every night and in a lot of ways you kind of feel like sitting ducks."

 Rutschman, agreed. "It's really, really scary," he said. "I haven't really been a part of something like that. You never want to see that," he shared.

Tampa Bay later on released a statement saying that the injured Bigge had begun rehabilitation following the incident.

The clash ended 12-8 in favour of Tampa Bay.