What Do You Think Is The Most Severe Injury As A Result Of Playing In The MLB?

Question

I Would Assume An ACL Tear.

Star Please

Answer 1

Death.  It's not like it happens a lot, but it does happen here and there.  There was one time about 5 years ago when a pitcher got hit in the head with a baseball.  Everyone was very scared and he was taken to the hospital, and died there.  It's really sad.

Answer 2

I have to agree with other answers that death and/or a ball to the head is the worst injury. I've seen the ball to the head situation twice in my life, both times were horrible:

My churches associate pastor was hit in the face with a line drive while pitching on the slowpitch softabll team. He had to have his face surgically reconstructed and still has (and always will have) a metal plate in his head. He still suffers headaches and other side effects. The thing that makes it even worse is that my church had 2 teams, who were playing against each other that day. The person who hit the line drive was one of the elders of the church.

The other situation was in acutal baseball. I saw a person hit a line drive right down the 3rd baseline. It hit the runner who was leading off of 3rd in the cheek, right under his eye. His eye was swollen shut and the game was delayed almost an hour while the paramedics came. I think the guy had a broken cheek bone, although he was lucky, if the ball had been an inch higher it would have hit him in the eye and I'm sure it would have blinded him (in that eye).

Answer 3

Death would of course be the worst.

Last year Juan Encarcion took that foul ball in his eye. His career is over and I believe is still partially blind in that eye.

Answer 4

The guy dieing from hitting his head in the wall was in the Natural, funny you mention that.

In the mid Nineties Moses Alou (sp) was going for a double in Montreal, and got his foot caught in the awful turg, hise leg got twisted, I mean his foot was point the other wrong way, that was pretty gruesome to me.

Answer 5

ACL Tears and deaths are severe. What about Chris Snyder. Fractured left t******e. Thats pretty severe thats like Kids death.

Answer 6

In 1920 Roy Chapman died from a beaning after being struck in the head by a pitch from Carl Mays.  This is the only time a death has occurred directly from action on the field in a MLB game.  Tony Conigliaro also suffered a terrible beaning after being struck by a Jack Hamilton pitch in 1967.  He almost lost his eyesight but came back even though he was never the same.  Herb Score , a pitcher for the Indians, was hit by a line drive off the bat of Gil McDonough hitting him in the face and breaking numerous bones and was never the same.

Answer 7

Going with the being hit by baseball category - how about Tony Conigliaro. Had to miss a year and a half and had eye trouble his whole life after being hit in the head.

Also, any pitcher who requires Tommy John surgery can be seen as a severe injury.

Answer 8

Ray Chapman died from being hit in the head with a pitch. It doesn't get worse than that.

MLB, ever at the ready to improve gameplay conditions, mandated batting helmets some 30-40 years later.

Answer 9

Getting placed in a coma because a ball clocked you in the head at 95 mph

Answer 10

I'd go with Death.  ACL can be fixed.  Death can't be fixed with surgery.  Ray Chapman was killed when he was hit in the head with a pitch.

Answer 11

Death. Just ask Ray Chapman...

Answer 12

advanced liver cancer from years of steroid abuse.

Answer 13

ACL tear in both knees

Answer 14

Actually, there have been a number of baseball players that have actually died during a game.  I know of one that slammed into an outfield wall trying to catch a ball and died.  Another, was a pitcher that actually got hit in the face with a baseball and died.  

The latter actually happens often.

Answer 15

Bruised egos. Emotional injuries are harder to cope with whereas physical injuries will heal eventually even after surgery.

P.S. You don't need stars because you ARE a star.

Answer 16

Getting hit in the eye like Bryce Florie a few years back would hurt something fierce.

Answer 17

Death, definitely most severe.  Rarely have we ever seen someone come back and play from Death, much less lead a normal life.  Elvis notwithstanding.

Answer 18

Tommy John is no joke. No one goes into that without heavily weighing their options.

Also, I'm not so sure I'd consider "death" an injury...