On June 15, 2008, at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Chien-Ming Wang -- the Yankees' ace, a 19-game winner in each of the previous two seasons -- was running the bases during an interleague game when his right foot gave out. He partially tore the Lisfranc ligament and the peroneus longus tendon in his right foot. The injury ended his season, effectively ended his career, and reignited one of baseball's most persistent arguments: why in the world are pitchers required to bat?
The Ace Before the Fall
Wang had been the Yankees' most reliable starter since 2006. His sinkerball approach -- heavy two-seam fastball, ground ball after ground ball, let the defense work behind you -- produced 19 wins in both 2006 and 2007. He didn't strike guys out (his career-best was just 76 K in 218 innings), but he didn't need to. The sinker was so heavy, so relentlessly downward, that hitters pounded it into the ground and watched Cano or Jeter turn the double play.
Entering the June 15 game in Houston, Wang was 8-2 with a solid ERA. He was the 2008 staff's best pitcher by a comfortable margin, and with Mike Mussina as the only other reliable arm, losing Wang wasn't just a setback -- it was potentially season-ending for the team's October chances.
The Play
The Lisfranc injury happened on the basepaths. Wang was running -- something he did maybe a dozen times a year, something he wasn't trained for, something that had nothing to do with why the Yankees were paying him -- and his foot buckled. The Lisfranc joint is a complex set of bones and ligaments in the midfoot, and when it tears, the damage is severe. For a pitcher who relies on pushing off the rubber with his lower half to generate the sinking action on his fastball, a Lisfranc injury is catastrophic.
Wang was done for 2008. The injury was the kind that changes everything -- not just the season, but the mechanics, the confidence, the ability to push off the mound the way you've done ten thousand times before. (He came back in 2009 and went 1-6 with the Yankees. The sinker didn't sink the same way. The body didn't do what the mind remembered. He was released after the season and bounced around for years, never recapturing what he'd been.)
Hank Steinbrenner Goes Nuclear
The public reaction from the Yankees' front office was unusually blunt. Hank Steinbrenner, George's son and the more outspoken of the brothers assuming control of the franchise, didn't hold back. He called the situation "asinine" and publicly demanded that the National League adopt the designated hitter. "The DH should be in both leagues," Steinbrenner told reporters. "The pitcher shouldn't be hitting."
Steinbrenner's frustration was shared by a sizable portion of the baseball establishment. The DH debate had been simmering since 1973 -- when the American League adopted the rule and the National League didn't -- but Wang's injury gave the argument a visceral, real-world example. Here was a franchise ace whose career was destroyed by an activity that had nothing to do with pitching. The risk-reward calculation of having pitchers bat was already dubious. Wang's foot made it look absurd.
(The universal DH wasn't adopted until 2022 -- fourteen years after Wang's injury. That's fourteen years of pitchers getting hurt doing something they're not trained for, because tradition apparently matters more than common sense.)
The Rotation Crater
Wang's injury exposed the fragility of the Yankees' pitching staff. With Wang gone, the rotation options were grim: Joba Chamberlain (still being transitioned from the bullpen), Phil Hughes (struggling), Ian Kennedy (8.17 ERA before demotion), and a collection of fill-in arms that couldn't reliably get through five innings. Pettitte was steady at 14-14, and Mussina was in the middle of his miraculous 20-win season, but beyond those two, the rotation was thin.
The Yankees made a deadline trade on July 26, acquiring Xavier Nady and Damaso Marte from Pittsburgh in exchange for Jose Tabata, Ross Ohlendorf, Phil Dumatrait, and Jeff Karstens. It was a classic "win now" move -- sacrificing prospects for immediate help -- but it couldn't replace what Wang had been. The staff allowed 727 runs, and the Yankees finished third in the AL East, eight games behind Tampa Bay.
The DH Debate's Long Arc
Wang's injury didn't settle the DH argument, but it became one of its most cited examples. Every time a pitcher got hurt batting or running the bases -- and it happened with depressing regularity -- Wang's name came up. The Lisfranc tear became shorthand for the absurdity of asking pitchers to perform a skill they practiced maybe twice a week.
The final season at the old Yankee Stadium ended with 89 wins and no playoffs. The offseason spending spree that followed -- Sabathia, Burnett, Teixeira -- was driven partly by the pitching depth the Wang injury had exposed. Without that torn ligament in Houston, would the Yankees have spent $423 million that winter? Maybe not. Baseball's butterfly effects are strange and unpredictable, and Wang's foot might've been the domino that led to ring number 27.
| Injury Date | June 15, 2008 |
| Location | Minute Maid Park, Houston |
| Diagnosis | Partial Lisfranc ligament and peroneus longus tendon tear (right foot) |
| Wang's 2008 Record (pre-injury) | 8-2 |
| Wang's 2006-2007 Record | 38-13 (19 wins each year) |
| Wang's 2009 Record | 1-6 (released after season) |
| Universal DH Adopted | 2022 (14 years later) |
Wang Dominates as Ace
Wang goes 19-6 (2006) and 19-7 (2007), establishing himself as the Yankees' most reliable pitcher with his heavy sinkerball and ground-ball approach.
The Injury
Running the bases during an interleague game in Houston, Wang tears the Lisfranc ligament in his right foot. He's done for the season.
Steinbrenner Blasts NL Rules
Hank Steinbrenner publicly calls the situation "asinine" and demands the National League adopt the designated hitter.
The Failed Comeback
Wang returns but goes 1-6. The sinker doesn't sink the same way. The Yankees release him after the season.
Universal DH Finally Arrives
Fourteen years after Wang's injury, MLB adopts the universal designated hitter, ending the debate that his torn ligament had helped fuel.
Frequently Asked Questions
What injury did Chien-Ming Wang suffer in 2008?
Wang partially tore the Lisfranc ligament and peroneus longus tendon in his right foot while running the bases during an interleague game at Minute Maid Park in Houston on June 15, 2008. The injury ended his season and effectively ended his career as an effective major league pitcher.
How did Wang's injury affect the DH debate?
Wang's injury became one of the most cited examples in the argument for a universal designated hitter. Hank Steinbrenner publicly called the situation "asinine" and demanded the National League adopt the DH. The universal DH wasn't adopted until 2022 -- fourteen years later.
Did Chien-Ming Wang ever recover from his 2008 injury?
Wang attempted a comeback in 2009 but went just 1-6 with the Yankees. His signature sinkerball never regained its pre-injury effectiveness, and the Yankees released him after the season. He pitched sporadically for several teams over the following years but never approached his 2006-2007 form.