DeSclafani's piano and the history of weird SF Giants injuries
After weeks of pitching with an injured foot, Anthony DeSclafani's toenail finally fell off.
DeSclafani had to leave Saturday's loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks after five innings due to pain in his toe, which came from dropping a piano bench on it. Yes, a piano bench.
"I was playing piano with my kid and I was trying to help him off the bench, and the thing literally squared my toe up," DeSclafani told reporters after the game. "The toenail finally just died. It's hanging on by thread."
SF Giants manager Gabe Kapler described the wounded toe as "not as raw as I expected it to be" and confirmed that the nail had finally fallen off and was now in DeSclafani's locker, suggesting "Maybe we'll keep it in a jar."
There's one former Giants pitcher who can relate to DeSclafani's woes: Jeremy Affeldt.
The bizarre Affeldt injuries began in September 2011, when he suffered a season-ending injury when he cut his right hand trying to separate frozen hamburger patties with a knife. In 2012, Affeldt sprained his knee catching his son, when the 60-pound four-year-old jumped off the couch to hug him.
Later, he hurt his thumb during Game 5 of the NLDS when he fell down the dugout stairs dodging a Gregor Blanco foul ball. And in his final season in 2015, he tore his patella when he slipped playing with his kids at a lake. Bruce Bochy summarized Affeldt's injury history: "He's not the most athletic guy."
Being attacked by a piano bench is one thing, but at least it wasn't a doughnut. Reigning MVP Kevin Mitchell missed the start of spring training in 1990 because of a painful root canal. He needed the dental procedure after he bit into a chocolate doughnut fresh out of the microwave.
Former third baseman Chris Brown once missed games due to a "bruised tooth root" and while playing winter ball, he missed a game due to a "strained eyelid." In 2002, Jeff Kent claimed he broke his wrist "washing his truck" - until reports came out about a man with a mustache crashing his motorcycle doing wheelies.
Madison Bumgarner admitted to his stunt riding injury in 2017, when he sprained his shoulder and injured his ribs riding dirt bikes outside Denver. We're sure it's a total coincidence that the injury occurred on 4/20 in Colorado.
And Hunter Strickland fractured his pitching hand in an eminently Hunter Strickland way: Punching a door after a blown save. Hunter, you don't punch with your pitching hand! Haven't you seen "Bull Durham"?
Hopefully, DeSclafani has learned a valuable lesson about spending time with his children. As Affeldt can attest, being a loving father leads directly to injuries.
