Jeremy Affeldt to DL with Another Freak Injury

Jeremy Affeldt is back on the disabled list after another bizarre injury.

One of the most freak injuries I've ever heard of came in 2011 and involved Giants relief pitcher Jeremy Affeldt, a frozen hamburger and a knife. It ended his season and summed up the Giants year nicely.

Affeldt just suffered another nasty injury that's going to cost him some time, and it's equally as bizarre: Affeldt's dealing with a right knee sprain, and he suffered it while catching his four-year-old son when he returned home.

Apparently, his son, Walker, who is all of 60 pounds, came running towards Affeldt as he walked in his house and leapt into the pitcher's arms. At that point, per Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle, Affeldt "said he felt a pop in the knee."

The pitcher woke up late at night to severe pain and eventually had to apply frozen vegetables to his knee because he had no ice. (Yes, the irony is quite strong.)

"The trainers are tired of getting that call, 'Hey, I'm at home and I hurt myself,' " he said. "As an athlete, you'd rather get hurt doing your job than not doing it."

Given that Affeldt needs somewhere between seven and 10 days to get healthy, the Giants moved him to the disabled list and purchased the contract of Travis Blackley from Fresno.

Blackley, a 29-year-old Australian, was 3-0 in Fresno with a 0.39 ERA and 19 strikeouts in 23 1/3 innings.

"I've been shipped around a bit," Blackley said. "I give new meaning to the 'piece of meat' slogan they call us in the minors. It's good to be where I want to be."

The move gives Blackley a real shot to generate some major-league interest in keeping him around. The Giants have plenty of relievers, but after losing Brian Wilson -- and seeing the many ways in which Affeldt can injure himself -- it's pretty clear that depth is not a bad thing.

Contact Us