Goldeyes' Roberson lucky he can see after eye injury

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Chris Roberson, bruising around his eye still visible, watches the Winnipeg Goldeyes take on the St. Paul Saints Sunday. (COLE BREILAND / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS) Photo Store

Centre-fielder Chris Roberson won’t be playing baseball for at least a week, but the fact that he was able to see Sunday’s baseball game from the Winnipeg Goldeyes’ dugout was something to celebrate.

Roberson, 32, was hit in his left eye during his fifth-inning at-bat on Friday at Shaw Park during a 4-1 loss to the St. Paul Saints. The ball bounced up off his bat, striking him on the eye and orbital bone. Roberson needed six stitches above the eye and suffered significant bruising and some bleeding behind the eye.

"Pretty dang lucky I can still see. If it hit me straight on, I’m in trouble. I was fortunate, very fortunate," said Roberson, speaking with media on Sunday morning while holding an ice bag on his left eye, which was swelled nearly shut with the stitches just below the eyebrow.

The Goldeyes (48-37) were meeting the St. Paul Saints (45-40) for an afternoon contest beginning at 1:30 p.m.

"They (doctors) said if it hit me straight on, I might be blind. It ricocheted off my cheekbone first and then shot up off my helmet."

Taken to hospital immediately from the field Friday by Goldeyes athletic therapist Shane Zbediak, Roberson was examined, stitched up and was able to go home.

"It was pretty scary because I couldn’t feel anything. Everything was kind of dark and black for a while. Just trying to get my vision back, I couldn’t see anything for about 10 minutes," Roberson said. "We started going to the hospital and it started coming back a little bit. Before the stitches, the cut was pretty open so it was tough to actually open my eye because it was bleeding all over the place."

"I’m getting my focus today. Yesterday was kind of blurry," Roberson said, adding he was told by doctors there was some scratching on the eye and that he’d see some spots for a bit.

On Saturday he was examined by two eye specialists, a surgeon and an iris specialist, who  determined there appears to be no permanent damage to his vision.

When the Goldeyes head out on the road this week to Gary and St. Paul, Roberson will stay home. He'll have his eye examined again Monday and Wednesday by specialists.

ashley.prest@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @WFPAshleyPrest