Brian Cashman breaks ankle skydiving

Trying to drum up publicity for the Wounded Warrior Project, Brian Cashman jumped out of an airplane twice Monday. Cashman, the New York Yankees' GM, came away from his first skydiving experience wounded himself.

After the first jump went great out of Homestead Air Force Base in South Florida — Cashman told the New York Daily News it was "an incredible experience" — he jumped again from about 12,500 feet. Cashman confirmed to the Daily News that his right ankle is broken. He's not sure about surgery yet.

John Harper of the Daily News wrote on Twitter that Cashman said, "I heard a pop in my ankle," and that a fire rescue truck arrived within 10 minutes of Cashman landing. And then:

People who attended to cashman say they're pretty sure his ankle is broken. They say bone was sticking out. Took him to hospital.

— John Harper (@NYDNHarper) March 4, 2013

Ouch, compound fracture, ouch! Now Cashman knows, approximately, how Joba Chamberlain felt after breaking his ankle while trampolining. These Yankees, they have an adventurous thirst that baseball alone cannot quench.

So, is jumping from an airplane something an important man like the GM of the New York Yankees should be doing? Of course he should. Here's Cashman explaining, via the Daily News:

"It's an opportunity to do something that a lot of people don't do or will ever do, so that's awesome," Cashman said before the jump. "It's called living. But it's not like on my list of something I've always wanted to do. I'm kind of excited for the opportunity to do it but at the same time, big-time nervous about doing it."

Yankees brass, players and fans probably had a few collective butterflies, too. But there's more to life than scanning the waiver wire, writing checks for free agents and making cursed trades with Jack Zduriencik. And Cashman still will be able to do all of those things once doctors have fixed his ankle. Maybe even during.

Cashman has a famous adventurous side, which includes yearly rappelling from a tall building while dressed as one of Santa's elves. This is the first time when something went wrong.

In case you're wondering: Cashman came in ranked No. 4 on the Sexiest GM's list. Jumping out of the plane helped his rating, but breaking his ankle lowered it. It's a wash.

Rather than getting lathered up over this, here's what we could do: Donate to the Wounded Warriors Project. They raise awareness of the needs of "veterans and service members who incurred a physical or mental injury, illness, or wound, co-incident to their military service on or after Sept. 11, 2001."

Here's what they want to accomplish in 2013:

• Closing gaps and eliminating barriers to improved mental health of warriors and their families and caregivers;

• Fostering the economic empowerment of Wounded Warriors through policy initiatives to eliminate educational and employment barriers;

• Helping ensure access to optimal, long-term rehabilitative care for severely Wounded Warriors, and needed support for their caregivers;

• Improving the effectiveness of government programs that were established to help Wounded Warriors and their families’ transition from active duty to successful community reintegration.

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