Jean Segura of the Milwaukee Brewers is heading home to the Dominican Republic after learning his nine-month-old son passed away on Friday.
Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports word reached the shortstop following Friday night’s loss to the St. Louis Cardinals. Brewers manager Ron Roenicke said one of the players’ wives learned of the sad news, which was passed along by a teammate:
Seggy‘s mom and uncle are here. We got word at the end of the game through his mom to one of the wives, and then the wife to her husband, and then to Seggy.
So, obviously it’s tough on him. He didn’t learn about it until after the game was over and one of the players came over and told him.
Roenicke stated the team knew very little about the situation beyond the fact that Segura had been in contact with people back home. His son was dealing with an unknown illness, but the general feeling suggested he was making progress in his recovery.
Details about the exact sickness and how long the 24-year-old’s infant son had been dealing with the condition are unclear.
The Brewers placed Segura on the bereavement list and called up Elian Herrera from the Triple-A Nashville Sounds to replace him on the roster until he’s prepared to come back.
Roenicke told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that there’s no timetable for his return. They are going to let him decide when he’s ready to play again.
“He’ll just have to make a decision where he’s at and what he feels like,” Roenicke said. “It’s different with everybody. Some guys might feel like, ‘Hey, I need to get back and I need to play,’ and some other guys just can’t do it.”
Major League Baseball’s All-Star break begins on Monday. After this weekend’s games, the Brewers won’t return to the field until next Friday night on the road against the Washington Nationals.
Washington shortstop Ian Desmond was among those to voice their support for Segura:
The 2013 All-Star is hitting .232 with 16 extra-base hits and 15 stolen bases through 88 games.
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