On this day in 2008 Carlos Quentin broke his wrist, ending his season prematurely.
If Joe Crede and Orlando Cabrera had only gotten outs, along with the flyball out by A.J. Pierzynski, in the ninth inning, Carlos Quentin would have never stepped to the plate for one last time. It was during this at-bat by Quentin that he fouled off the second pitch by Indians starter Cliff Lee. Carlos was so frustrated by that foul ball that he automatically did something he had done thousands of times before. He took the bat in his left hand and hit down the bat head on his closed right fist. Only this time he missed and nicked his wrist. He finished the at-bat by grounding into a double play, ending the game.
While the injury didn't prevent the White Sox from getting into the postseason. The Pale Hose only won twelve more games after September 1st, but it was enough to squeak by the Minnesota Twins in a Game 163. It did rob Carlos Quentin of a possible MVP trophy, at the very least. Without Quentin in the lineup for the ALDS against the Tampa Bay Rays, the White Sox looked limp. The White Sox only won the third game of the playoff series and their hopes of repeating as World Champions just a few seasons after their eighty-eight year drought ended was quickly dashed. This was Quentin's season to prove himself and he derailed it all by himself. Carlos provided peeks into his brilliant 2008 performance in further seasons with the Sox, but could never replicate his first season on the South Side. He was traded to the San Diego Padres on December 31, 2011 for Simon Castro and Pedro Hernandez.
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