Matt Carpenter's Bat Bizarrely Broke Before He Made Contact With Ball

Karl Rasmussen | May 12, 2024

St. Louis Cardinals DH Matt Carpenter breaks his bat on a swing vs. the Milwaukee Brewers. / Screenshot via Codify on X

A broken bat is not an irregular occurrence in an MLB game, but what St. Louis Cardinals designated hitter Matt Carpenter experienced Sunday was far more perplexing than the standard case of some splintered lumber.

During an at-bat against the Milwaukee Brewers, Carpenter's bat appeared to break clean off at the handle while he swung at a pitch from Bryse Wilson. Although Carpenter fouled the pitch off, slow motion replay actually shows that his bat broke before making contact with the pitch.

whoa this bat broke before contact pic.twitter.com/T6u5OHtQDa

— Codify (@CodifyBaseball) May 12, 2024

Carpenter's bat can be seen separating from the piece in his hand mid-swing. The barrel of the bat actually makes contact with the ball, causing it to hit off the mitt of Gary Sánchez. The rest of the bat landed just a couple of feet away in the opposite batter's box, while the handle remained in the hand of Carpenter.

By the way Carpenter reacts, it's clear to see that he was a bit mystified by what had just occurred, as were fans on social media who had plenty to say about the unusual incident.

I've done lots of analyses of unusual events, including broken bat hits. This one is truly challenging and probably beyond my ability. https://t.co/MNHY7CnZsX

— Alan Nathan (@pobguy) May 12, 2024

are fanatics making the bats this year too? https://t.co/iX7DrILv0V

— jordan (@notbubbawallace) May 12, 2024

You see something new everyday.. https://t.co/J0cfFIKx92

— Baseball over basketball forever (@WhatOKnows) May 12, 2024

This is wild. 😳 https://t.co/QqbGc2gDmh

— Adam Young (@youngpbp) May 12, 2024

Imagine this causing a strikeout https://t.co/wiZZJG3PQL

— Josh Collier (@J_Collyay) May 12, 2024