Nothing says “Spring Training” like bizarre injuries, and Will Smith (no, not that one) gave us one for the ages earlier this week.
The Milwaukee Brewers reliever, expected to share duties as closer this season alongside Jeremy Jeffress, was getting ready to shower Thursday after pitching in a minor league game when he seriously injured himself performing the simplest of tasks: Removing his shoe.
“I pulled hard (on the shoe) and it stayed on,” Smith said, via ESPN.com. “My knee just went up and popped. Everyone tells you there is nothing you can do about it, but you still feel like you are letting people down.”
The reason for Smith’s melancholy is that the 26-year-old found out Friday he tore a ligament in his right knee. He will miss at least the beginning of the regular season and as of Friday was waiting to see if he needed surgery.
If there’s any consolation for Smith, his unfortunate mishap pales in comparison to some other surreal injuries suffered by MLB players. Former Boston Red Sox pitcher Jake Peavy once missed a start after cutting his finger with a fishing knife, while Texas Rangers hurler Derek Holland tore his meniscus tripping over his own dog.
We’ve also somehow seen multiple sandwich-related injuries, as San Francisco Giants pitcher Matt Cain hurt his finger trying to cut his sandwiches into “fancy triangles” and Tampa Bay Rays righthander Joel Peralta managed to hurt his neck climbing out the car to pick up some sandwiches.
Keep your head up, Will. Your injury could be a whole lot weirder.
Thumbnail photo via Benny Sieu/USA TODAY Sports Images
