Injuries are common in sports. People are exerting their bodies to their full potential and sometimes, that can go wrong. However, there have been instances where players end up on the IL for reasons that sound made up.
Sammy Sosa’s sneeze strain – 2004
The Cubs slugger had such a hard sneeze that it caused back spasms. Sosa had to miss some playing time due to his cold.
Better hope he got a lot of “gesundheits” from teammates.
Trevor Bauer versus the drone – 2016
In recent history, technology has been used to improve the game of baseball. From the new ABS system to motion sensors in bats, baseball has appreciated new tech.
Unfortunately for Trevor Bauer, he was on the wrong side of it in October 2016. While attempting to fix one of his drones, one of the blades sliced his finger open. It was so bad that he was taken out of a playoff game after just a few pitches! Not the kind of cutter he was looking for.
Joel Zumaya’s Guitar Hero Injury – 2006
Guitar Hero on the Nintendo Wii was all the rage in the mid 2000’s. The Detroit Tigers flamethrower was one of those who caught onto the trend, and thoroughly enjoyed the game.
He liked it a bit too much. Zumaya missed playoff action due to wrist inflammation from “too much ‘Guitar Hero.'” The team heavily advised him to stop playing to save his future in the league.
Zumaya only lasted 5 years in the big leagues, so I guess he got to play lots of Guitar Hero after all.
Marty Cordova’s tanning bed burn – 2002
Cordova felt the burn outside of the gym in 2002. The outfielder fell asleep in a tanning bed and got some serious burns after staying in it for too long.
Doctors told his to avoid sunlight, which is pretty hard considering baseball’s played outside. That makes you think though. Why need the tan if you’re… already outside?
Steve Sparks’ stunt gone wrong – 1994
The aspiring knuckleballer took his appearance in spring training as a chance to gain fans. After gathering fans around, he tried to rip a phone book in half.
Unfortunately for him, he’s not an Olympic heavy lifter, and he dislocated his shoulder.
Glenallen Hill’s arachnophobia
And of course there was the 1990 episode with Blue Jays player Glenallen Hill when he fell through a glass table after waking up from a nightmare about spiders chasing him.
It’s clear that injuries could happen anywhere, to anyone. So it’s best to keep pushing, and it’s probably best to stay away from trying bad ideas.
