Major League Baseball has millions of fans across the country that rely on reporters to deliver news accurately about their favorite sport. Some become favorites for their humor while some win hearts by championing players. Among the rare few that do both is ESPN’s Jeff Passan, who recently announced some tragic news.

MLB teams are no strangers to players going on the IL during crucial games, but it seems like reporters are not safe from injury either. Just as teams must use spare players to make up for a deficit, so must ESPN with one of its famed columnists out for the count. At least for a while.

Top MLB Insider Announces Back-Breaking Injury

Baseball fans may have noticed Passan’s recent lack of activity on social media. On July 17th, he gave an update as to why – a tree branch fell on him, resulting in a severe injury. Thankfully, he still has use of his limbs, most importantly his fingers, but the tree literally broke his back.

Kansa City, where Passan currently resides, has been recently experiencing storms from rain to hail. In a tweet, Passan revealed that the tree limb fell on him during a cleanup and has resulted in a vertebra fracture.

“The good news: I still have use of my arms, legs and Twitter fingers. The bad news: I have a broken back,” he wrote.

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But he’s hopeful for the future that the pain will subside until the trade deadline comes up. It’s an extremely busy time in baseball and with his usual humorous flair, Passan added, “Painkiller-fueled tweets could be a fun time.”

Jeff Passan Thanks His Family and Promises Vengeance to His Injury Culprit

The columnist finished his message with a note of thanks to his family, doctors, as well as ESPN friends. “To my incredible family, friends and everyone at ESPN who have been so supportive: Thank you. For the nurses, doctors and support staff at KU Med: I so appreciate your care and diligence.” True to form, his last line read, “My back may be shot, but my phone still works.”

Furthermore, Passan, who has been with ESPN since 2019, also revealed his plans for what he wanted to do with the tree branch. Although he has never played professional baseball, he wrote, “You can be da*n sure I will be making a bat out of it.” 

Best wishes for a speedy recovery of Jeff Passan, and good luck with the bat!

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