Rickie Weeks could not find his helmet, unable to pinch hit

The Milwaukee Brewers wanted to have veteran second baseman Rickie Weeks pinch hit for Scooter Gennett on Saturday night. That seems simple enough, right?

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There were a number of reasons to make such a move. Gennett was dealing with some tightness in his leg so the Brewers were hoping to get him some rest. A left-handed pitcher was in the game for the Washington Nationals, making it a better match-up for the right-handed hitting Weeks.

These aren’t even the kinds of decisions that earn Ron Roenicke the big bucks. He makes these managerial decisions in his sleep. This substitution calls for nothing more than autopilot from Roenicke.

That would normally be the case, but when Roenicke tried to make that substitution on Saturday night, things got weird.

Adam McCalvy of MLB.com describes what happened:

"One problem: He couldn’t find his helmet. Eager to move the lopsided game along — Washington led at the time, 8-1 — home-plate umpire Vic Carapazza approached the Brewers’ dugout and expressed urgency. With the helmet still missing in action, Roenicke instead sent backup catcher Martin Maldonado to bat."

Isn’t this every kid’s worst nightmare from little league, played out in a big league setting? The coach tells you to go in but you cannot find a bat and helmet. Rather than wait, the coach puts somebody else in. Crippling disappointment and tears likely ensue.

Presumably there are no other helmets in existence that fit on Weeks’ head due to his famous dreadlocks. As it is, his helmet seems to literally fall off every time he runs 90 feet to the next base. Why his helmet was not in the rack where all the helmets are housed is unknown, but it cost Weeks an at-bat on Saturday night.

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