Chicago Cubs: A look back at the strangest injuries in team history

Major League Baseball is the all-encompassing professional sport when it comes to significant player injuries. The Chicago Cubs have experienced their fair share as we break down the strangest of the strange.

Every time news breaks of a weird injury sustained by a professional athlete, most people’s immediate inclination are to assume it has to do with professional baseball. Whether something happens during the regular season or in the offseason, MLB leads all pro sports in the almost unbelievable injury category.

In 2005 it was then-rookie for the Colorado Rockies Clint Barmes, who broke his collarbone after slipping and falling carrying deer meat. In 2013, Carl Pavano slipped and fell while shoveling snow at his home and ended up taking the handle of his snow shovel in the abdomen, causing internal bleeding and an emergency room trip to the hospital.

The list is continuous. Just recently, it was reported that New York Mets outfielder Yoenis Cespedes suffered his fractured ankle, which kept the outfielder out for the rest of the season after he stepped in a hole trying to trap a wild boar on his ranch in Port St. Lucie. Now, with all of that being said, it is time to dive into the Cubs and the strangest injuries to happen to the Northside.

Chicago Cubs: Mike Harkey, gymnast

As a newborn in 1990, I, of course, have zero recollection of the former starting pitcher who was selected fourth overall by Chicago in the first round of the 1987 first-year player draft.

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Mike Harkey played in Chicago from 1988-1993. In his first two seasons, Harkey managed a very respectable 3.15 ERA across 32 starts on the mound. The righty exceeded with a 128 ERA+, meaning he was 28 percent better than league average.

In 1992, Harkey found himself on the receiving end of a bizarre injury, landing him on the season-ending injury list and forced him to miss all of the spring training the following season as well as the first half of the regular season.

A routine day off, September 6th, 1992, began like any other day for Harkey. The Cubs were hosting the visiting San Diego Padres in for a home game. During pre-game warmups, Harkey decided to showboat for his teammates. He attempted a cartwheel in the outfield. Not only did it not go as planned, but it also caused Harkey to suffer a severe knee injury, effectively ending his season.

Chicago Cubs: Steve Trout and his bike

Steve Trout is another one of those guys who you generally tend to forget about. Trout was decent for the Cubs, following a trade with the Chicago White Sox in a crosstown transaction. He was with the Cubs from 1983-1986 and did pretty decent with them during his time.

Following a rocky 1983 season, Trout responded very well to his shortfalls. Trout rolled up a 3.41 ERA over 31 starts the following year, and, over two years, the gangly left-hander managed a solid 3.40 ERA over 330 2/3 innings.

Trout continued it into the following year, as he managed to pitch to a 3.39 ERA and finish with a 117 ERA+, which helped to show that Trout would be a productive member on the mound. Unfortunately, Trout only made 24 starts due to an injury he sustained as he had some nerve damage in his shoulder.

In a regular-season matchup versus the Cincinnati Reds, a start that Trout was supposed to make, unfortunately, did not happen. The verdict going around states how Trout fell off of a stationary bike, landing him on the disabled list. From then on out, Trout was relatively subpar and never made much of an impact.

Chicago Cubs: Kyle Farnsworth times two

Of all of the Cubs players, Kyle Farnsworth may have the worst luck when it comes to the injury front, especially when it comes to the weird and unusual problems forcing you to the injured list. However, unbelievable and ridiculous it was for Farnsworth, it was all true.

The same season Sosa went on the injured list for his back, Farnsworth joined him. A few months after the Sosa incident, in an August game versus the Houston Astros, Farnsworth allowed the Astros to plate six runs in the ninth.

Coming off the field, Farnsworth ran into the dugout, kicking an electric fan. Not only was the poor fan not okay, but Farnsworth also was not okay. The right-handed reliever suffered a sprained right knee and was immediately placed on the injured list. It is why we don’t mess with inanimate objects, Kyle.

Five years after this injury, Farnsworth, who was far removed as a member of the Cubs, suffered another freak injury. This time, in an attempt to break his bulldogs up while fighting, sustained lacerations to his hands, forcing him to get stitches and hit the injured list. I hope your dogs were okay, and thanks for joining this heralded list, Mr. Farnsworth.