Joba Chamberlain, relief pitcher for the New York Yankees, dislocated his right ankle when jumping on a trampoline with his son at a children’s play center in Tampa.
Reports suggest that Chamberlain’s injury was relatively severe, or at least severe enough to threaten his career with the Yankees. According to the NY Daily News , Chamberlain was bleeding severely after dislocating his right ankle to the point that there was concern for his life.
Immediately following the injury on Thursday, Chamberlain was taken to a local hospital where he underwent surgery, according to Yankees general manager Brian Cashman. Chamberlain was scheduled to go through various tests on Friday, but his exact condition isn’t known at this time.
One of the chief concerns of the medical staff at St. Joseph’s Hospital tending to Chamberlain is that his ankle could become infected. The surgery on Thursday was intended to repair the ankle and remove the infection, but if those efforts prove unsuccessful his career is in serious jeopardy.
“That is the nightmare scenario for all orthopedic surgeons and patients, an infection in the bone,” said Dr. Craig Levitz, the chief of orthopedic surgery at South Nassau Communities Hospital (via NYT ). Levitz went on to say that if there is an infection, “it would be unlikely to ever see him running again. Many people make a full recovery from this, but far from all.”
NY Daily News asked Cashman whether or not Chamberlain’s injury would effectively end his career, Cashman tried to maintain optimism. “I couldn’t say. I just couldn’t say. I’d like to say no. My heart and my gut tells me no, that’s not the case. But at the same time, I don’t want to spew information that I’m not really in a position to talk about. It’s not my area of expertise, far from it, so I don’t want to be in a misleading situation. I don’t want to make mistakes on either side of it.”
