USWNT player suffers season-ending injury throwing ceremonial first pitch

US Women’s National Team player Croix Bethune has suffered what is undoubtedly one of the strangest season-ending injuries you will see in any sport.

Bethune, a 23-year-old midfielder who plays for the Washington Spirit of the NWSL, will miss the remainder of the club season after suffering a torn meniscus. The Spirit said the injury happened “away from training,” but head coach Jonatan Giráldez confirmed that Bethune suffered the injury while throwing out the ceremonial first pitch at a Washington Nationals game on Aug. 28.

“She had a problem making the first pitch the other day [at] the baseball game,” Giráldez said Wednesday, via Jason Anderson of USA Today Sports. “We will report about exactly what she has, but she is not going to be available this season. It’s bad, bad news, but in the end, it’s part of life. We have to keep going.”

Bethune was enlisted to throw out the first pitch as part of a pregame ceremony that honored her and three of her Spirit teammates that won gold at the Paris Olympics. Video of the pitch doesn’t really suggest that anything looked immediately wrong.

very cool moment 🥇@CroixBethune threw out the first pitch at the @Nationals' game tonight! pic.twitter.com/C4MIWzsLLW

— Washington Spirit (@WashSpirit) August 29, 2024

We have seen plenty of off-target ceremonial first pitches from athletes. Someone getting hurt throwing one, on the other hand, is entirely new. Bethune didn’t even appear to be trying anything fancy — she just fell victim to what appears to be a total freak accident.

Bethune has five goals and 10 assists in 17 games at club level this season. There are still eight games left in the regular season plus the playoffs, so this will be a significant blow for both her and her team.