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Cardinals Hall of Famer had to leave a game for the weirdest reason in MLB history

Beware of bugs at Busch Stadium!
ByJosh Jacobs|
August 22, 2011; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Cardinals left fielder Matt Holliday (7) is helped off of the field by Cardinals trainer Barry Weinberg (center) after having a bug fly into his ear during the game against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Busch Stadium. The Dodgers defeated the Cardinals 2-1. Mandatory Credit: Scott Rovak-Imagn Images
August 22, 2011; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Cardinals left fielder Matt Holliday (7) is helped off of the field by Cardinals trainer Barry Weinberg (center) after having a bug fly into his ear during the game against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Busch Stadium. The Dodgers defeated the Cardinals 2-1. Mandatory Credit: Scott Rovak-Imagn Images | Scott Rovak-Imagn Images

Matt Holliday literally experienced the injury bug in 2011!

Baseball is an interesting sport, and if you watch enough games, you'll see some pretty crazy and wacky moments every once in a while. I mean, do I need to remind you of Randy Johnson hitting a bird with a fastball? But if you think back to the St. Louis Cardinals' magical 2011 season, the rally squirrel (another wild baseball moment) wasn't the only living creature to make a scene for the club.

During the top of the eighth inning on August 22nd against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Holliday began grabbing at his right ear and running toward the infield diamond, flagging the Cardinals' trainers as he grimaced in pain. It was odd for sure, as it happened after a ground ball single to right field by Dodgers' first baseman James Loney, a play Holliday had no involvement in.

While the broadcast was confused as to what was happening at the time, it was later reported that Holliday had a moth fly into his ear, causing him to have to leave the game in order to receive medical attention.

Matt Holliday once had a moth fly inside his ear during a Cardinals game.

Once Holliday was taken out of the game, the Cardinals' training staff got to work on removing the moth from his ear, and apparently, after they used an instrument to grab the moth, it came out of his ear fully intact and alive. I can't imagine what that must have felt like!

As I said earlier, most Cardinals fans remember the rally squirrel that made a mad dash on the field at Busch Stadium during Game 4 of the 2011 NLDS, which is another iconic animal moment in baseball history that happened on their way to the Cardinals' 11th World Series title. It's crazy to think, though, that something like that would happen to Holliday in the middle of a game!

Holliday now contributes to a podcast called "Serving It Up" with FanDuel Sports Midwest's Jim Hayes and former Cardinals Lance Lynn and Kyle Gibson, so hopefully we can get a recounting of the moth story from him in the near future.

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