If you stayed up for the end of that marathon White Sox-Mariners game Wednesday night, you would have seen Ken Griffey Jr. single in Adrian Beltre for the winning run in the 14th. You would have seen an elated Mariners squad chase down Griffey in celebration.

But underneath the joy, there was pain. Deep pain. The kind of pain that hits you in the groin. Well, just, here:

Mariners third baseman Adrian Beltre might miss the rest of the season after taking a hard one-hopper to his groin off the bat of a White Sox player Thursday night. (This should say Wednesday night.)

Manager Don Wakamatsu said the Gold Glove third baseman is out indefinitely, and might need surgery because of bleeding in a testicle. Beltre does not wear a protective cup because he says it’s uncomfortable.

If Beltre needs surgery, he could be out for an extended time. If there’s no surgery, he would need 10 days to two weeks to recover.

I agree. Cups are really uncomfortable. I haven’t worn one in several years, but from the sounds of it, cup craftsmanship has not evolved to the point where they are comfortable for a major-league third baseman to wear. (Someone really needs to do something about this. It’s 2009, people. Let’s evolve the cup into something that’s not only comfortable, but breathable and made from recycled products!)

But, this is part of the reason why players deal with the uncomfortableness, no matter how much they hate it: you can take a hard one-hopper to your balls and one of them CAN START INTERNALLY BLEEDING.

This a fate I don’t wish upon my worst enemy. And I don’t even have a worst enemy.

Via Larry Brown Sports.