Summarize and humanize this content to 2000 words in 6 paragraphs in EnglishHOUSTON — Spencer Arrighetti fractured his right thumb while shielding his head from a batted ball during Seattle Mariners batting practice at T-Mobile Park on Monday.“It was just a really, really freak accident,” Arrighetti said on Saturday in his first public comments since the incident. “That’s the best way I’ve been able to reason with it so far.”Part of Arrighetti’s routine between starts includes playing catch in the outfield while teams — including his own Houston Astros — take batting practice. He described his pregame work on Saturday as “a really normal day.”Arrighetti said he did have someone standing guard to protect him from this possibility and heard someone yell that a ball was incoming.“The ball just happened to find me. I never saw it,” Arrighetti said. “Threw my hands up over my head and it caught me in a weird spot.”Arrighetti knew immediately he’d sustained a serious injury, but said he still told pitching coach Josh Miller to “give me five minutes” before he would determine if he could continue throwing.“Thirty seconds later, I told him I needed to go inside,” Arrighetti said. “I knew it was broken pretty much right away.”
Spencer Arrighetti speaks with Yainer Diaz during his most recent start, when he allowed five earned runs to the Twins over 3 2/3 innings. (David Berding / Getty Images)Arrighetti will wear a cast on his right hand for at least the next two weeks, after which the team will take more images of the injured thumb to monitor its healing. On Friday, general manager Dana Brown said Arrighetti could be out for up to six weeks.Arrighetti confirmed on Saturday he will not require surgery, which makes his road back “really clear cut.”“I’ve never shut down for any amount of time, so I think that’s the biggest challenge I’m overcoming right now is being OK with (down) time and essentially taking things a step back,” Arrighetti said.“I’ll still be lifting and I’ll still be doing everything in the background I can be doing. I feel like it gives me more motivation. I feel like I’ve got a light at the end of the tunnel.”Long reliever Ryan Gusto filled Arrighetti’s spot in the starting rotation on Saturday against the Los Angeles Angels, but the Astros aren’t committed to Gusto beyond one start.On Friday, Brown mentioned left-handed prospect Colton Gordon as a possibility for Arrighetti’s next turn in the rotation, which would allow Gusto to return to the long relief role where he’s impressed the Astros thus far.(Top photo: Tim Warner / Getty Images)
