Compiling a Softball Injury List - Help!

[danhawks]

Story is out in the Newest issue! - Compiling a Softball Injury List - Help!

[UPDATE - 5/6/2011] Just wanted to say thanks again to everyone who helped out with this, especially Andy Purcell. He spent at least an hour with me on the phone for this story and answered a bunch of texts. Good guy to talk with, for sure. Be sure you say hi to him if you see him out there.

ESPN Mag page 82 - the issue with the bull impaling the Matador - came out today. I'm not sure who the Chicago guy is, don't ask me, but a combination of Andy's anecdotes and all your stories helped tremendously with the story.

I hope everyone goes out and grabs a copy. I'll also post a link to my blog with the full Purcell interview sometime this month.

Stay safe out there everyone!
-Dan
--

Hey guys, as you can see, I've been a long-time member of this site. I played over 150 games last year and I'm thankful that I didn't have any major injuries, but I know some of you have.

Aside from playing softball, I'm a freelance sportswriter and I have pitched a story to a major publication that's doing an issue about "Dangerous Deeds" in sports, and they accepted my pitch to do a small story (really an annotated photo) about softball injuries.

Andy Purcell is on board to talk to me about some of the dangers of pitching to the big boys, so there's a start.

Now, we know that some people have had life-threatening or life-taking injuries from batted or thrown balls. Freak accidents for sure, and those will be mentioned. But what I'm looking for your help with is letting me know the injuries you have dealt with in softball.

We're talking about muscle and ligament tears (rotator cuff, labrum, ACL, etc.) broken bones (thumbs, noses, cheekbones) and any other on-the-field injuries. Road-rash and black-and-blue marks probably are not serious enough to be mentioned unless you needed some out-out-of-the-ordinary treatment. However - stitches from running into a fence because there's no warning track would definitely qualify. That happened to two guys on my teams last year.

Just respond to this post with some injuries that have caused you to miss significant playing time. If you're potentially willing to go on the record as a source (and would give me your phone number) send me a PM.

Thanks,
Dan

 

[Swilldog]

foul ball to the face while catching count? opened me up like ya stuck a knife in my nose and pulled it straight out.

tore my shoulder trying to turn a double play which has never come back [torn bursa sac] i quit playing for 2 yrs after this happened. i thought i was having a heart attack because the pain was so bad i couldnt breathe and it was all the way to the left side of my chest.

knocked myself out during a rain with a swing, I lost the bottom hand off the bat and only had 2 fingers holding the top hand [over lap grip] bat came around and smoked me in the back of the head [30oz powercell]. i did get to first base before i dropped though lol.

i have seen more nasty things happen to other people then myself though.

 

[spdracer7326]

Putting a tag down on a guy I broke my hand - Aug. 2009. It kept me out of the playoffs and fall ball that year.

04/07/2011 - Was told I have a stress fracture in my right foot. It happened about 7/2010 when I was charging a ground ball playing pitcher.

 

[Gamble]

I tried to play with an ulnar collateral ligament sprain...


Keyword is "tried".

 

[danhawks]

Swill - you hit yourself in the head with the bat? That's awesome!
I will definitely mention catchers getting hit - while not wearing a mask. I contributed to one of these when the bat came out of my hands and hit the catcher square in the forehead. Lots of blood and 10 stitches. I've also seen a second baseman break his meat-hand finger - ball in the glove, catches it, but it breaks the finger on the non-glove hand. Maybe all our dads yelling "two-hands" were wrong?

 

[danhawks]

Gamble - did you have TJ surgery or was it just rest, ice, rehab?

 

[smallfry16]

Sublexed my patella which was the result of being indecisive running home and kind of did a half slide half stand up kind of thing. This ended up resulting in my first knee surgery to clean out the scar tissue under my kneecap.

1st ACL tear was in some thick, wet dirt and I turned funny when trying to make a throw.

2nd ACL/meniscus tear I believe had started when I went to catch a fly ball in the OF, stepped in a hole and turned my leg funny to catch myself. I felt it pop, but was able to keep playing after a few days. A year later (and several other funny pops later) it finally gave out when I was running the bases and tried to switch directions when the runner in front of me went back to 2nd base. I'm just now getting back to playing after this one, but it's a slow process.

 

[Gamble]

Gamble - did you have TJ surgery or was it just rest, ice, rehab?

So far it's just been RICE + Rehab, knock on wood.


It started off as a relatively minor sprain (as far as elbow sprains go, anyway) that I tried to play through, and naturally got progressively worse. Eventually started feeling like I was playing with a serious fracture in my elbow, at which point I decided to finally take it easy. The damage was, luckily, not severe enough to warrant TJ surgery. I'm apparently still more susceptible to potential damage in the future because of it, so we'll see how long I can go without going under the knife...

 

[jerosan77]

Tore my calf from my achilles rounding third 3 yrs ago, Broke three ribs diving for a ball at third 2 yrs ago, and last yr broke two bones in my foot blocking the bag on an OF assist, the only one that I didnt play through was the calf of course, missed the last month of the season.Two yrs ago in a tourney we played, a pitcher in Billings, MT got hit in the chest by a batted ball and it gave him a heart attack... he was only 24. Goosetown tourney in ********, MT... SS bobbles the ball, trying to save face he smoked the ball to first still(unnecessary throw) 1st baseman, runner, and 1st base coach were'nt paying attention. The ball hit the 1st base coach in the right eye, knocked him out cold, broke eye socket, and severe brain hemmoraige, they had to life flight him to Seattle. He came back the next year, less an eye. Used to have pics on my phone but don't anymore... It was fricken nasty

 

[TonyB]

Sublexed my patella which was the result of being indecisive running home and kind of did a half slide half stand up kind of thing. This ended up resulting in my first knee surgery to clean out the scar tissue under my kneecap.

I fractured my tibial plateau and tore my MCL trying to stop/avoid running over a third baseman tagging me 15 feet off the bag (baseball though). I was out 6 weeks, but my first AB back, the first pitch I saw, hit a homerun and ran the bases in a knee brace.

 

[Flash]

Two months out with a broken Bennett's joint in the right hand, 2007
Two months out with a broken left wrist, 1998
Tore rotator cuff twice, each time rehabbed in off-season ... most recent tear was last year
Torn patellar tendon, 1994
Grade 2/3 concussion, 2001 (?)

Everything else has been soccer and hockey

 

[osufan2k]

Last season, probably the second or third game of the year, had to rush to a game and didn't have time to stretch or warm up. Stepped into the batters box, swung at a pitch, felt a weird pain in my back. I thought i had pulled a muscle. I played through the pain (sat out a lot of innings though) and thought at some point it would get better and heal. Towards the end of the season and no improvement in my back, i went to the doc to get an MRI scheduled. The MRI found I had a badly ruptured a disc in my lower back which required surgery. I had the surgery and i'm back to 100% this season.

 

[j-sig]

some ive seen:
outfielders colliding (hitting heads, broken nose)
infielders getting bad hops and taking hard ground balls off the face
seen a shortstop miss a line drive in get hit right in the nuts....luckily he was wearing a cup

 

[csullivan0185]

Back in February, I was pitching and took a line drive to my face. Dislocated my jaw. Knocked two teeth out and split my chin to the bone. 9 stitches.

 

[jimmermc]

5 years ago playing church softball I sprained my left ankle on a d-bag play at third. Hit a ball in the gap in right and was slowing almost to a walk coming into third after third base coach said no play. As I'm about 5 feet from the bag, 3rd baseman slaps his glove (I was looking at the bag) and fakes a tag. Thinking there was a play, I tried to slide with no momentum and my foot dug in. I finished the game at first and threw up after last out for combination of pain and adrenaline let-down.

Spent 2 weeks in a walking boot, missed a week of work, and was out for 3 months for softball and a year before my golf swing was back to normal. Ankle has never 100% recovered. Lots of clicks and catches and occasional pain. Will have it looked at if something else sidelines me for a significant time.

 

[danhawks]

This is (1) inspiring that all have you have made it back playing and (2) the start of a great list. Thanks.

 

[stingers 8]

multiple injuries

1. Broke my right foot by taking a line drive off of it from a lefty while playing 3rd -- no surgery required (missed a season)

2. Tore right shoulder labrum, shredded the bicep tendon a little and small tears in rotator cuff from not warming up and kept playing with a bum arm -- required surgery (missed 2 seasons) but never the same

3. Hairline fracture on 1st knuckle on left pinky finger from another line drive. (played through it)

4. Tore tendon off of left thumb (lower knuckle area) from sliding into 3rd -- required surgery (missed seasons)

This is a culmination of injuries over 7 yrs of playing. Hope that helps!

Also, I saw a guy trying to rob a Home-run and got stuck on the fence. The top of the fence stuck through his eye lid. Nasty blood and a few stitches but was back the next week playing same position.

 

[BMLPARTIMER]

Last year august 14 local charity tournament, I slid into 3rd a little late and the base was ripped on a corner, well my knee decided to hit that corner with the metal sticking out. It gauged my knee to the bone, gauged a little bone off, tore my knee wide open. Had to have 36 outside stitches and 21 interior stitches. Stood up on 3rd didn't even feel it look down and blood was just rolling down my leg onto my new white cleats. Got a huge scar and pics if interested lol.

 

[cdamron13]

had a ball hit back at me so hard when i was pitching that it broke my thumb....my thumb still has this huge lump/bump thing on it where the bone/bones never healed right even though i had it in a splint for at least 6 weeks or more

this is not worthy of being in an article about injuries but it did hurt and leave my thumb deformed, lol

 

[BigShep]

In the past 12 months, I:

- tore a muscle in my forearm
- strained my plantar facia tendon badly
- dislocated the ring finger on my throwing hand

... and still played in over 100 league games and 50 pick-up games at age 64.

 

[bigdog69]

playing catcher guy decides to lower his shoulder and run through a tag bent my hand back fracturing the thumb in 4 places and tearing the ligament also know as skiers thumb or gamekeepers thumb out 6 months

linedrive to the kneecap as a pitcher fractured the cap possible knee cap replacement needed

not me but i watched 2 young outfeilders collide jew to forhead forhead knocked out cold was eventually ok jew not so much he comes up spitting out bone thought it was teeth turned out peices of his jew came out through his gums

just a few

 

[srf1021]

2001 league game here in CT ;I tried to stretch a single into a double as the ball was bobbled down the rt field line. Ss covering decided it would be a great idea to get out of the way of the ball and me diving in headfirst after I had started my slide!I was safe but caught the side of my head on his shin and broke my neck in 3 places;spiral fractures of c4,5 and 6!didn't black out or lose consciousness but knew instantly something was wrong ;seriously wrong!got up with a hand from my friend eczwick on here and his dad and got off the field but could not pick my head up to look even straight ahead!
Ambulance was called and I left the field strapped on a backboard on a stretcher.

Lots of nerve damage and still have issues even now !I was never able to play again but learned to stop taking things for granted and live each day to the fullest.

 

[jrockdog]

was pitching and took a thrown ball to the mouth b y the 3B during warmups.

Tore ankle ligament on a wet home plate

 

[voges23]

turf toe. ask deion sanders. it retired him. along with his inability to tackle.

 

[mnr4evr]

Broken thumb....turning a DP, stepped on second and the baserunner plowed me over .

 

[NCASAUmp]

Let's see...

Saw two fielders collide, knocking one out and causing him to lose his 4 front teeth.

I've seen a guy's patella go 90º to the outside when he hit the ball and tried to run out of the box.

I've seen a girl's nose explode with blood when the shortstop lightly tossed the ball to her, only to have it tip off the glove and hit her square on the nose. 30 minutes later, it was still bleeding heavily.

I broke my ankle in 2009, requiring surgery this past December. Should return to the field in the next month or so.

I took a bat to the top of the head, giving me a nice laceration that should have been closed with staples. Went with Dermabond instead - BAD choice, because it got infected and broke open two days later.

I've seen a 74-year old third baseman get knocked over by a 60+-year old runner. Not sure if he broke his hip, but he did get carted off.

My dad got football-tackled at home plate in a fireman's/policeman's picnic game back in '82/'83. Tore his MCL and missed a LOT of work.

Just a few of the injuries that have happened on my field.

 

[JJK13]

Teammate went up against the fence for a catch in the OF, caught his knee on a metal twist tie( Like a bread tie, but suppose to hold the fence tight and suppose to be turned to the outside of play!). Tore his knee open all the way to the knee cap. I think he had 4 staples and 10 stitches.

Playing in a snow tourney, I moved from pitching to 3B because I was becoming snow blind and couldn't pick up the ball coming off the bat anymore. First inning I moved, a guy hit a solid line drive, I stepped over and into it to field it, lost it, turned my head away an dput my glove up. The ball missed my glove and hit directly on my cheek. Shattered the back of my jaw, broke it in the front also. 2 plates and 8 screws.Still ahve nerve damage on part of my lower lip and chin, but it has only been two months. I may end up losing a tooth or two or I might need a root canal on them. I have pics of my xray if you want them. Lost 27 lbs in 6 weeks being wired shut.

 

[asangapol]

1/2003 - Heart attack while playing ss. Played through 2 innings of chest pains before i couldn't play anymore. Thought it was I was out of shape or something, so i just went to club house to rest. Age 33, 5' 5'' 180lbs, so i wasnt old or big.

10/2005 - Cracked cheek bone playing 2nd. Lefty first baseman try to do a fancy spin throw to the ss on 2nd after we both charged for the ball. i stopped about 1 ft away from him since he scooped it up. He decides to do a 360 and throw to 2nd with my face in the way not looking at him.

4/2010 - Seperated shoulder while diving for a ball. What sucked was i had just went out to take the field while trying out for a new team during practice. What really sucked is bastards didn't give me a 2nd chance when i recovered.

 

[Wolfynuts24]

got shoulder impingement syndrome from gunnen from the outfield over the past 6 yrs then one day last year i ran back and cought one on the warning track and along the warning track is a cement walking trail. as soon i cought it i go to throw and fall on that same shoulder and POP! it came out of place. went to the doc and everything to get it put back in place. he tells me theres no real ligament damage but because of the shoulder inpingement its going to keep poping out. so i had an experimental procedure where they shot collagen around my shoulder to hold my shoulder in place while i got rehab/physical therapy for 4 months. havent had a problem since and my arm is stronger then ever.

i've tore my shin up ALOT from sliding on really hot days when i wear shorts instead of pants. i cant do that anymore though cause im a pretty hairy guy and its starting look funny.

 

[bdubbew]

I saw a SS hit a girl in the head as she was running to first. Can't remb if she got life flighted or not. But she was in the hospital for awhile and still has brain damage. I blew mu ankle up trying to avoild a tag, was out in a boot for awhile out a month or so