https://nypost.com/2018/03/19/it-was-a-mistake-for-bob-uecker-to-ignore-this-spider-bite/
A brown recluse spider took Bob Uecker juuuuuuuuuust a bit outside his comfort zone — and nearly out of the broadcast booth.
The 84-year-old — getting ready for his 48[SUP]th[/SUP] season calling games for his hometown Milwaukee Brewers — told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that the poisonous venom of a brown recluse spider nearly stopped him from returning to the game that he loves after getting bit in October in the backyard of his home in Scottsdale, Ariz.
“I had a pair of shorts on,” Uecker told the newspaper. “I got bit by a spider but I didn’t know it. I didn’t feel it bite me. The next day, I had a red mark on my leg, and it kept getting bigger. I kept trying to take care of it by myself but it kept getting worse.”
The spider bit Uecker on his left leg as he was replacing a light bulb. Four days later, he visited a doctor for scheduled blood work and was told he needed to get to a hospital immediately. Uecker said the doctor recognized the wound immediately.
A doctor later cut away infected flesh from the bite, which can potentially lead to death, although fatal bites are highly unlikely. In fact, more than 90 percent of recluse bites heal without complications, although they can leave permanent scars, according to National Geographic.
The wound had to be left open following the surgery, which marked Uecker’s latest health issue dating back to 1991, when a round of batting practice led to the discovery of an aortal aneurysm in his abdominal area.
“It has to heal from the inside out, so they left it open,” Uecker said of the procedure, his 11th major surgery. “That took five weeks. I couldn’t believe it.”
A brown recluse spider took Bob Uecker juuuuuuuuuust a bit outside his comfort zone — and nearly out of the broadcast booth.
The 84-year-old — getting ready for his 48[SUP]th[/SUP] season calling games for his hometown Milwaukee Brewers — told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that the poisonous venom of a brown recluse spider nearly stopped him from returning to the game that he loves after getting bit in October in the backyard of his home in Scottsdale, Ariz.
“I had a pair of shorts on,” Uecker told the newspaper. “I got bit by a spider but I didn’t know it. I didn’t feel it bite me. The next day, I had a red mark on my leg, and it kept getting bigger. I kept trying to take care of it by myself but it kept getting worse.”
The spider bit Uecker on his left leg as he was replacing a light bulb. Four days later, he visited a doctor for scheduled blood work and was told he needed to get to a hospital immediately. Uecker said the doctor recognized the wound immediately.
A doctor later cut away infected flesh from the bite, which can potentially lead to death, although fatal bites are highly unlikely. In fact, more than 90 percent of recluse bites heal without complications, although they can leave permanent scars, according to National Geographic.
The wound had to be left open following the surgery, which marked Uecker’s latest health issue dating back to 1991, when a round of batting practice led to the discovery of an aortal aneurysm in his abdominal area.
“It has to heal from the inside out, so they left it open,” Uecker said of the procedure, his 11th major surgery. “That took five weeks. I couldn’t believe it.”
