The Houston Astros are expected to be without star third baseman Alex Bregman for the next couple of games due to a right elbow injury that has been bothering him in recent days.
The source of that injury was not something related to the game of baseball.
In Bregman’s words, it was because he slept on it wrong and he is just tired of trying to play through the pain that it has caused him.
The good news is that tests revealed no major structural damage to his elbow and it is not expected to be a long-term thing. Still, missing some games because you slept on your arm wrong is probably the most relatable a professional athlete will ever be to the fans watching them on TV.
After a slow start to the season, the Astros have opened up a three-game lead in the American League West over the Seattle Mariners, and Bregman’s bat has been a big part of that turnaround lately.
He has been outstanding since the start of June, and especially strong at the plate in recent weeks. He has a .887 OPS over the past 30 days and is over 1.000 over the past two weeks, making him one of the best hitters in baseball during both stretches.
His injury also brings back memories of some of the most bizarre injuries in baseball history. Several players, including Sammy Sosa, Kevin Pillar and Ricky Romero missed time due to injuries sustained while sneezing. Glenallen Hill once missed time due to an injury that he said was suffered while dreaming about trying to get away from spiders, while former knuckleballer Steve Sparks was injured by dislocating his shoulder while trying to rip a phone book in half.