Phillies INF Middlebrooks breaks leg in spring game
Philadelphia Phillies infielder Will Middlebrooks, in camp on a minor-league contract, suffered a broken leg in a collision with teammate Andrew Pullin during Saturday's spring training game, manager Gabe Kapler confirmed Sunday.
Kapler said Middlebrooks broke his left fibula and that additional tests were needed to determine whether the 29-year-old veteran also had ankle damage.
Middlebrooks was playing third base during the spring game in Clearwater, Fla., against the Baltimore Orioles and went back into left field attempting to field a popup when his ankle tangled underneath Pullin as the ball fell for a single.
Middlebrooks was removed from the field on a cart and taken to a local hospital.
"Pretty emotional moment," Kapler said Saturday. "He was disappointed to come out of the game, especially after busting his (rear end) the first five or six days (of camp) and being in really, really good condition and being excited about camp. We'll see how this goes. You put yourself in his position. A ton of hard work leads up to that moment. (He gave) everything he (had) on that play."
Middlebrooks is a veteran of six major-league seasons with Boston (2012-14), San Diego (2015), Milwaukee (2016) and Texas (2017). He hit .211 with three RBIs in 22 games for the Rangers last season, spending most of the year at Triple-A Round Rock. For his career, he has a .228 batting average with 43 home runs and 155 RBIs in 347 games.
Middlebrooks agreed in December to a one-year minor-league contract with the Phillies with an invitation to camp. He would get a $1.2 million if added to the 40-man major league roster.
His season is likely over and his career, Middlebrooks said Sunday, is uncertain.
"Fearless to me is not being afraid to fail, bold I guess you could say is the term around here," Middlebrooks said, per the Philadelphia Inquirer. "I feel if you play with a fear of failure you don't tap into how great you can be. If you question your every move, you don't want to fail, you don't want to mess up.
"So for me, it's being able to play free and not question myself and be OK with messing up and be OK with failing. Because it's going to happen. You get out seven times out of 10 your whole career and you're a Hall of Famer, right? It's a game full of failure. You have to be OK with it and take it in stride and learn from everything you go through.
"That was my main goal. Be fearless and play hard. I told Kap, it's the second game of the year. I haven't played a meaningless game in my life. I've always had that attitude but I was trying to take it a little further this year. I don't look at that play yesterday as being reckless. It's just a baseball play. What I told him is in years past I might have pulled up on that ball."
--Field Level Media