After an outfield collision left him paralyzed, every gain in rehab is a big win for A’s Ryan Lasko
Minor league baseball prospect Ryan Lasko is undergoing intensive physical rehabilitation after a collision in the outfield left him paralyzed. The article details his struggle to regain basic motor functions and his transition from a promising athlete to a patient.
Why it matters
It highlights the physical risks inherent in professional sports and the life-altering consequences of on-field accidents.
Ryan Lasko, a minor league prospect with the Athletics who was paralyzed in an outfield collision moves onto a mat table as physical therapist Daniel Gabrielli looks on at the Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation in West Orange, N.J. last month. Matt Rourke/The Associated Press
Ryan Lasko threads his left middle finger through a loop on his left sneaker. His face reddens as he finds the strength to slowly pull the leg across his body to the opposite side of a training table. He is spent.
Those legs that once powered Lasko to track down falling line drives as a top baseball prospect for the Athletics now have to be lifted by hand. He practices again and again with all the energy he can muster, mastering skills that will allow him to move from bed to wheelchair and back again.
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