Refusing to bow to baseball custom, medical recommendations or good sense, New York Yankees second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. is still declining to wear a protective cup after fouling a ball off his groin earlier in the week.
‘If you don´t trust your hands, I would recommend wearing a cup,’ Chisholm said before Friday’s win over visiting Cincinnati. ‘I feel like it´s more defensively that you would wear a cup than hitting. At the same time, I just never thought about wearing a cup.’
It was only a day earlier that Chisholm fouled a 2-2 curveball from Chicago White Sox pitcher Sean Burke off his groin
Asked Friday to describe his pain level at the time of the incident, Chisholm responded: ‘a million.’
Despite this, Chisholm was feeling better on Friday and later homered in the 5-0 win over the Reds.
Following the game, Chisholm admitted he’s never worn a cup, not even in the minors, where the protection is mandatory.
New York Yankees’ Jazz Chisholm Jr., right, reacts after fouling a ball off himself Thursday
Chisholm has never worn a cup despite a rule requiring all players to do so in the minors
‘I’ve never worn a cup,’ Chisholm said. ‘I’m not going to change. Just an unlucky instance right there.’
A third-generation big leaguer whose MLB career lasted from 1997 until 2009, Yankees manager Aaron Boone was surprised to learn so many current players risk injury by refusing to wear a cup.
‘In December going to hit soft toss, I put a cup on,’ Boone said. ‘That´s the difference between this generation and my generation. I did nothing without a cup baseball related. The first time I heard Adrian Beltre didn´t wear a cup, blew my mind, but now I know a lot of these guys don´t wear cups.’
Beltre, Boone’s fellow third baseman, once suffered a testicle injury when a ground ball got him in the groin.
But many players do find it uncomfortable and restrictive to play with a cup, particularly outfielders, who complain that the padding can limit their range on defense. Most famously, Seattle Mariners legend Ken Griffey Jr.
