Dodgers announcer breaks wrist on Brewers' home-run slide
Things took a turn for the worse for Dodgers reporter David Vassegh when he slid down Bernie Brewer’s slide prior to Wednesday's Dodgers-Brewers game.
Vassegh instantly started yelling "Holy crap!" several times as he went down the slide. When he reached the end, Vassegh was still yelling the phrase — until he hit the wall. The yelling turned to pain, causing Vassegh to crawl to piece his body together.
Vassegh broke two bones in his right wrist and cracked six ribs from the impact against the wall. The injury sent him to urgent care, but didn't keep him out from working Wednesday's game, though. He made it back to American Family Field by the fifth inning. Once Vassegh returned, Dodgers announcers Joe Davis and Nomar Garciaparra played the video of the incident for the audience before laughing for several moments.
The broadcast crew then sent the live shot down to Vassegh, who was reporting from the field.
"Hi guys," Vassegh said, smiling while holding his arm up to show the cast around his right arm and wrist.
The slide that caused the injury was actually Vassegh's second time down Bernie Brewer's slide on Wednesday. He went down without a problem the first time, but wanted to go a second time to get it on video.
"That time, it went a lot faster," Vassegh said. "It was a lot slicker the second time. That’s where it got a little out of control at the end."
Once everyone knew Vassegh was OK, Dodgers players poked fun at him.
"That one was for you," Dodgers catcher Austin Barnes told Vassegh in a postgame interview following Los Angeles's win. "I know you had a little accident today on the slide, so we all rallied for you."
Third baseman Justin Turner videotaped one angle of the incident and posted it on his Instagram. On Thursday, Turner made a chalk line of where Vassegh hit the wall.
"#HolyCrap #VasseghsChalet," Turner wrote in a tweet with an image of the chalk line.
Bernie Brewer got in on the fun, too. Ahead of Thursday's Dodgers-Brewers game, the mascot gave Vassegh a sign that read "0 days since last incident" along with a "Slide Instruction Manual" that said, "It’s really not that hard."
Vassegh said he'll likely have to have surgery once he gets home.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.