[NautiNurse]

Best wishes to nutmeg for a speedy recovery!

[Grampa Dave]

Nutmeg, I hope you got to keep the ball.

[Bigg Red]

OMW, GF. Here’s to a speedy recovery. I hope you got to keep the ball, at least.

[stanz]

Omigod! Nutneg, I just knew those Sawks would do you in!
So sorry, but if you had to be injured, it’s more exciting than just an ordinary accident. Better come to the Yankee games instead...so much safer!!!

[NYer]

Such an injury mandates, at the very least, an autograph from Adrian Beltre ;-)

[LadyPilgrim]

Thanks NN and please get well Nutmeg! :-)

[tioga]

awfully painful way to meet a ballplayer! get well soon!

[4integrity]

oooooo, wishing you a complete and speedy recovery

Hey, NautiNurse! Great to ‘see’ you! Hope all is well with you.

[nutmeg]

... you didn’t hear how I broke my arm? ;-)

[nutmeg]

Thank you all so much for your concern and kind comments since my "hit" on Friday, June 11th at Fenway Park in Boston. An extra-special thank you to my FRiend NautiNurse who created this thread, which gave me a good laugh when I really needed it. :o)

I am fully able to type with both hands again, so I felt I should update everyone who so kindly left comments and well wishes for me on this thread.

Well, I'm lucky to have had a broken arm in the age of medical miracles... I don't have to wear a heavy cast, and my arm is officially "fixed", although it's still a bit sore, depending on how I move it.

I was hit with the ball on June 11, had "plate and screws" surgery - a 40 minute procedure - on my arm to fix the broken bone (radius bone, forearm) a week later on June 18 (we waited a week so I could have the surgery at our local hospital in Hartford, CT). I did have to wear a fairly heavy, annoying cast for 6 days, then it was removed on June 24 in the doc's office. I'm now required to wear a removable (with lots of velcro) soft cast until my final (?) doctor appointment in mid-July, but I wear it on an as-needed basis. (I have it off now so I can type better, although I can type while wearing it, too)

I do have a 4" scar on my forearm from the surgery, but I've had a few operations in the past, and already have a small collection of scars, LOL. I'll try one of those scar-fading creams once the small butterfly bandages (holding the incision together) are removed. I am astounded at how rapidly my hand in particular, and arm are returning to normal. Each day is much better than the day before. I still have some pain in the mid-arm where I was hit, and where the surgery was done, but, that also improves every day. I am a regular lap swimmer, and my doctor cleared me to return to swimming by the end of the week... just 2 weeks after the surgery.

This "plate and screws" surgery is apparently common now to fix broken bones (this is the first broken bone I've ever had). This surgery was recommended by two orthopedic doctors/surgeons at the Boston hospital ER where I was taken after being hit, and again by my orthopedic surgeon at St. Francis Hospital in Hartford, CT. The doc says the non-ferrous metal plate/screws won't interfere with any MRIs, if I ever needed one, although it's possible I might have to be wanded at airports and federal buildings. The plate and screws can stay in for life (I can't feel it) or - if I really want them out - they can be removed, but via surgery of course. It's a small amount of "metal" compared to titanium knees/hips.

The "Fenway ambassadors" (Red Sox fan services employees) at Fenway Park have been incredibly nice... they contacted me twice while I was still in the Beth-Israel Deaconess Hospital ER in Boston, and several times since, via phone and e-mail. My husband and I returned to Fenway for a game on Saturday, June 19. One of the Fenway ambassadors delivered a fantastic Red Sox "goodie bag" to our seat (way out in the lowly bleachers, LOL) filled with fun Red Sox stuff. In case you're wondering, the Red Sox nor any major or minor-league team are not liable for any medical expenses, etc. if you get hit by a ball (or probably even a bat) at their ballpark. Read the fine print on your ticket!

My husband did get the ball that hit me, and so far we've had it signed by one of the EMTs and by my surgeon. We requested that it be signed by Adrian Beltre to complete the "trifecta". Our Fenway ambassador said he will do his best to get it signed for me. We'd just like it as a souvenir... obviously the ball will be less valuable with the two non-player autographs.

I didn't mention this upthread, but I was hit by a baseball once before. Back in the mid-1980s, I attended my first-ever minor league baseball game (the AAA Maine Guides, now defunct), and - while still outside the ballpark, and seconds after purchasing the ticket - a foul ball bounced out of the park and hit me in the face! I was lucky once again... it hit my cheekbone, and all I ended up with (besides the ball) was a black eye for a week or so. Welcome to minor league baseball!

I was an innocent bystander for that game, but not really for the June 11 game at Fenway, as I was inside the park watching batting practice in the center field bleachers. I was paying attention to the balls being batted during batting practice (as I always do), but I momentarily lost track of the ball coming at me in the sun, plus there was still a ball bouncing wildly in the empty seats near me that Adrian Beltre had just hit before "my" ball, so that was a distraction (my husband was scrambling to get it). It was a fluke, really.

My message to you all isn't to cordon off entire ballparks by netting, but - please - be careful, particularly in those small minor-league parks. Especially watch your babies, kids and elderly relatives... kids especially aren't always paying attention to the game and little ones usually can't catch a batted ball, glove or no glove.

I consider myself VERY lucky to have only suffered a broken arm... it could have been a LOT worse.

{{{HUGS}} to all of you, and once again, THANK YOU for your kind comments and well wishes! :o)

nutmeg

Some related articles:

Baseball kills woman in San Angelo, TX (June 2010)

Recent foul ball death raises safety concerns about baseball parks (June 2010)

Line Drive Cracks Girl's Skull At Dodger Stadium (June 2010)

Girl injured during BP OK after surgery [L.A. Dodgers] (June 2010)

Here’s Why You Better “Go Hands Free” at the Baseball Game – Video [Yankee Stadium] (June 2010)

Foul balls are a scary part of baseball (June 2008)

[Hot Tabasco]

I took a line drive off my shin a few weeks ago playing 3B for my senior softball team. The only sympathy I got from my teammates was the warning to next time put my glove in front of the ball, that's why its on my left hand.

Let that be a lesson, never go to a ball park without the proper equipment........

[P.O.E.]

Could be worse:

Ouch! Twins’ Span hits mother with foul ball

Baseball Fan Hit by Foul Balls Twice in One Game

Now with that cast you can just bat them right back. Best wishes for a speedy recovery.

[P.O.E.]

Could be worse:

Ouch! Twins’ Span hits mother with foul ball

Baseball Fan Hit by Foul Balls Twice in One Game

Now with that cast you can just bat them right back. Best wishes for a speedy recovery.

[InvisibleChurch]

Nutmeg struck by fly ball? I’d expect it to be it by a ground ball.

[warsaw44]

Oh my heavens!
Nutmeg, please get well soon. I hope thats not your beer drinking arm!

[LucyJo]

Best wishes for quick healing and recovery.

The least he could do is autograph the cast! : )

[gimme1ibertee]

Best wishes!

[OB1kNOb]

Well now, this little accident wouldn't have happened if you had been paying attention to the game, now would it?..... ;-)

Seriously, hope your arm heals soon.

[Doogle]

*LOL*