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Phillies prospect loses eye after freak accident

Minor-league pitcher Matt Imhof, 22, says doctors told him his eye was "crushed like a grape" after a piece of metal from an exercise machine struck his head last Friday.

Piece of metal hit minor-league pitcher Matt Imhof

The Associated Press ·
Matt Imhof, a 22-year-old left-handed pitching prospect, had surgery Thursday to remove his right eye after he was hit by a piece of metal from an exercise machine. (Matt Imhof/Instagram)

Philadelphia Phillies minor-league pitcher Matt Imhof has lost his right eye after a freak accident with exercise equipment.

Imhof said in an Instagram post Thursday that he had surgery Tuesday to remove the eye. He said the first operation couldn't restore his vision and he opted to have a prosthetic put in.

The 22-year-old was injured after a game Friday when a piece of metal broke off an exercise machine and hit him in the head and eye. He also suffered a broken nose and two broken orbital bones.

Imhof said doctors told him that his right eye was "crushed like a grape."

The left-hander was a second-round pick in 2014 out of California Polytechnic State University. He was pitching for Single-A Clearwater.​

Imhof didn't say if he plans to continue playing baseball.

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