Most of the stories about body parts after ALCS Game 3 were about Trevor Bauer’s mangled pinky finger, but his manager also had something happen to him before Game 3…he lost a tooth.
Well, it was a tooth covering, not the actual tooth itself, but the bizarre ailments afflicting Indians pitchers have now migrated to their manager. Terry Francona had the problem fixed at about 1 A.M on Tuesday morning.
“Right before the game, I mean, like literally, my lower tooth, the veneer popped out while I was chewing. That thing came off and I’m chewing and it felt crunchy. I was like, ‘Uh oh.’
“So, I undid my tobacco and there’s my tooth. So, I’m [ticked] now. I’m [really] hot. I called [head athletic trainer] James [Quinlan] down and I gave him my tooth and I said, ‘You call [the team dentist] and tell him I’m going to [rough him up].’ And I said, ‘Tell him he better find me a [expletive] dentist up here tomorrow.'”
This is what happens when you chew, kids. Don’t chew.
“So then James comes back in, like, the third inning and I said, ‘Tell me you found a dentist.’ He goes, ‘I came to tell you about Trevor.’ I go, ‘[Screw] Trevor!’
“They found me a dentist last night. I went from [Rogers Centre] to a dentist last night at 1 o’clock in the morning. Some dentist met me downtown and [expletive] put it back in. How about that? That’s unbelievable. I’m good to go. [Heck] yeah, I’m good to go.
“It didn’t feel good when that tobacco hit that root during the game. I was so conscious of it. I kept [tonguing at it]. I was so mad. [The dentist] was in the training room the other day and he goes, ‘Hey, how are the teeth doing?’ He goes, ‘They’re [expletive] invincible.’ [scoffs] There’s not much there, man. It’s not real good looking.”
Cutting your pinky finger trying to repair a drone is one bizarre injury, but popping a tooth covering while chewing tobacco is one that I haven’t heard before, at least. Despite the weird maladies, the Indians continue to win, and are only one win away from their first trip to the World Series since 1997.
