Majorly Bizarre Injuries
'Freak' Accident for Quentin
AL home run leader Carlos Quentin has only his temper to blame for a broken wrist after the slugger punched his own bat Monday night. "When I first found out, I was very disappointed and very upset about how it did happen," Quentin said. "<a href="http://sports.aol.com/mlb/story/_a/bbdp/al-home-run-leader-has-broken-wrist/162625" target="_blank">It's a freak thing that happened</a>."
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
Getting It Off His Chest
Khalil Greene's frustrating season likely ended with one punch during a game in late July. The Padres star <a href="http://www3.signonsandiego.com/news/2008/jul/31/greene-fractures-hand-may-be-out-season/?padres" target="_blank">shortstop broke his left hand</a>, reportedly by striking a storage chest at Petco Park after a poor at-bat.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
The Shallow End
Oakland rookie Daric Barton was placed on the disabled list with a neck strain July 19 after <a href="http://sports.aol.com/mlb/story/_a/bbdp/as-barton-injured-diving-into-pool/90310" target="_blank">smacking his head on the bottom of a pool</a>. Barton went to the emergency room to close a gash on his head, but did not lose consciousness.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
Watch Out for Splinters
Early in July, Rockies star Troy Tulowitzki was placed on the disabled list and needed 16 stitches <a href="http://sports.aol.com/mlb/story/_a/rockies-star-injured-in-freak-accident/20080705230009990001" target="_blank">after he sliced his palm open</a> while trying to take his frustration out on his maple bat. Tulowitzki called the injury "one of those freak, freak things."
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
He Broke His What?
Arizona Diamondbacks catcher Chris Snyder suffered a fate no man ever wants in a game against the Brewers in June. Snyder took a foul tip off the bat of Corey Hart to the groin area, resulting in a broken testicle.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
Tales of the Strange
Detroit Tigers star Brandon Inge pulled a muscle while <a href="http://sports.aol.com/fanhouse/2008/06/25/brandon-inge-hits-the-disabled-list-in-a-pillow-lifting-related/" target="_blank">moving a large pillow</a> for his young son in June, an injury that landed him on the 15-day disabled list.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
Weirdly Wounded
Felix Pie, left, and Kazuo Matsui both suffered painful injuries during Spring Training. Matsui got what doctors called "anal fissures" as a side effect of hemorrhoids, while Pie had to have surgery after twisting one of his testicles.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
Dang DVD Wrappers
More embarrassing than Adam Eaton's 6.29 ERA last year was a 2001 incident in which the then-Padre stabbed himself in the stomach with a paring knife while trying to open a DVD package. We're guessing Eaton will use his hands when he gets his brand new copy of <a href="http://imdb.com/title/tt0477051/" target="_blank">Norbit</a>.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
Oh, Deer
Hitting .329 at the beginning of June 2005, Rockies infielder Clint Barmes was well on his way to winning Rookie of the Year. Then he got a package of deer meat from teammate Todd Helton. Barmes fell and broke his collarbone while lugging the venison into his house. He's never been the same since.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
Not a G'day, Mate
Catcher Dave Nilsson was the first Australian player to be named an All-Star, but he gained even more notoriety when he missed much of the 1995 season after contracting Ross River Fever, a virus carried by mosquitoes Down Under that can cause fatigue and flu-like systems for weeks.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
A Web of Hilarity
Glenallen Hill sleepwalks. He also has arachnophobia. Somehow these combined in calamitous fashion. During a violent nightmare about spiders, Hill bumped into a glass table and tumbled down a flight of stairs, suffering cuts and scrapes ... and earning himself the obvious nickname "Spiderman."
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
Better Door Than Window
Hunter Pence topped his new teammate Matsui in the odd injury department this spring. The second-year outfielder got lacerations on his hands and knees when he slid through a sliding glass door. Pence missed a week of action, but has since returned for the Astros.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
Strumming a Sad Song
Video games won't just rot your brain, they'll also put you on the shelf. Flame-throwing reliever Joel Zumaya developed inflammation in his right arm and missed three games of the 2006 American League Championship Series because he played too much "Guitar Hero."
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
Iron Unkind
John Smoltz appears bound for Cooperstown, but he won't be making the homemaker Hall of Fame. Smoltz severely scalded himself while trying to iron his shirt. The bizarre twist? He was wearing the shirt at the time. Apparently Smoltz had never heard of these newfangled ironing board things they have.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
Dangerous Doughnuts
Kevin Mitchell once strained a muscle while vomiting, but another injury takes the cake ... er, doughnut. Mitchell showed up late for Spring Training after chipping his tooth on a chocolate doughnut that he left defrosting in the microwave too long.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
UV Rays Can Be Harmful
Marty Cordova, the 1995 AL Rookie of the Year, was productive for four teams during his nine-year career, but he's best remembered for a mishap on the tanning bed. In 2002, Cordova missed a game after burning his face during a UV-ray-soaking session that went a little too long.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
Salad With a Side of Pain
Reliever Matt Wise, now with the Mets, cut the middle finger on his throwing hand on a pair of salad tongs when he was a member of the Brewers in 2006. The right-hander sat out several games because the cut hurt his ability to throw his changeup.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
Foul Foot
Some injuries will make you laugh, this one will make you squirm. St. Louis reliever Randy Flores landed on the DL in 2005 with an "avulsed callus pad." What really happened? Flores felt his foot getting hot on the mound. When he peeled his cleats and socks off, some of the skin on his foot went with it.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
Bra Bungle
Even venerable managers aren't immune to injuries of the weird. Giants skipper Roger Craig cut his hand on a bra strap -- no word on whose bra strap it was -- in the early 1990s. Crusty old baseball man that he was, Craig still made it to the bench to manage the game.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
Nothing to Sneeze At
Sammy Sosa's final season in Chicago got off to an odd start. The slugger arrived at the clubhouse before a game in 2004 and sneezed violently twice. The sneeze set off back spasms that kept him in the trainer's room while his Cubs teammates finished off a three-game sweep of the Padres.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
Dial S for Strange
Credit knuckleballer Steve Sparks for reminding us all of the dangers of motivational speeches. In 1994, the then-Brewer watched a speaker tear a phone book in half. Sparks tried to replicate the trick and ended up dislocating his shoulder. No word on how quickly he was able to call a doctor.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
Cowboy Up
Considering Wade Boggs had quirks that included eating chicken before every game and drawing Hebrew script in the batter's box before every at-bat, it figures he'd show up on this list. Boggs once missed seven games after injuring his back while putting on cowboy boots.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
Jimmy Cactoe
If you're playing for the Royals, chances are you've had more than your share of bad luck in life. Fate piled on for Jimmy Gobble, who hit the trainer's table when he accidentally kicked a cactus playing golf and got a thorn lodged in his foot, showing why soccer is no longer played with cactus balls.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
Foot Fungus Strikes
Mickey Tettleton was a two-time All-Star catcher and one of the best hitters in the '90s. But Tettleton is also remembered for a game he didn't play when he sat out with athlete's foot, caused by tying his shoes too tightly. <a href = "http://www.fieggen.com/shoelace/twoloopknot.htm" target = "_blank">Bunny ears</a>, big guy.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
No Injury-Free Lunch
Ryan Klesko won a World Series with the Braves and starred for several seasons with the Padres, but he once injured himself ... lifting a lunch tray, proving once again that you should always be sure you have your own lunch tray, and not Shawn Kemp's.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
A Saucy Adventure
Bret Barberie wasn't much of a major leaguer, but he is remembered for his All-Star worthy injury. The second baseman once missed a game after rubbing chili juice in his eye, something you too might try if you had to watch David Wells shower 162 times a year.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
Captain Hook
Mark Smith was the No. 9 overall pick in the 1991 draft, but it turned out he wasn't much better at baseball than home air conditioning repair. Smith injured his hand while sticking it into an air conditioner to "find out why it wasn't working." We can only assume because it was clogged with hand parts.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
In the Blink of an Eye
Jose Cardenal played 18 years in the major leagues, but he probably never lived down the embarrassment of an "injury" in 1974. Cardenal missed a game that season because he couldn't blink, presumably because he was in a heated staring contest.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
Toe-tal Embarrassment
George Brett is one of the greatest third basmean ever, but even he's not immune to bizarre baseball injuries. The Royals legend broke his toe on a chair in house while running to his television to watch Bill Buckner.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
Coleman's Cruel Fate
Vince Coleman's journey into the annals of bizarre baseball injuries was crueler than most. The speedster got rolled up into a tarp machine and was forced to miss the 1985 World Series, which the Cardinals lost.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
Star Hurler
Tom Glavine is on his way to Cooperstown in part thanks to his remarkable durability, but that didn't stop him from missing some time after breaking a rib while vomiting up airplane food.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
A Real Howler
Leave it to Nolan Ryan to get the toughest-sounding bizarre injury of them all. The strikeout king missed a start with the Astros after he was bitten on the hand by a coyote.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
A Real Shakedown
And leave it to a knuckleballer to suffer one of the lamest bizarre injuries on this list. Charlie Hough broke his pinky finger while shaking hands with someone.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
Remote Danger
Make no bones about it, Marlins reliever Ricky Bones injured himself while channel surfing on a clubhouse television, proving once and for all that too much television is, in fact, bad for you.
Majorly Bizarre Injuries
Double Trouble
For Jason Isringhausen, bizarre injuries come like socks -- in pairs. While with the Athletics, the relief pitcher broke his hand punching a trash can shortly after he stabbed himself in the leg while trying to open a package.