If you were told a snake has involved with Boise's road trip to Long Beach and California this past week, you probably would have guessed a boa constrictor was choking the life out of the Spuds but instead it was a Pacific rattlesnake that bite back-up catcher Allan MacHugh in his hotel room prior to Boise's game against the California Crusaders on June 23rd.According to Tina Hanson, a California state animal control official, MacHugh opened his closet to find a four-foot venomous snake coiled on the floor. Before he could react, the snake lunged at MacHugh's right arm and bite him for several seconds, before releasing its fangs and being thrown to the hotel bed where it made its way across the room and into a pile of pillows. MacHugh's roommate, Carlos Muñóz, called the hotel front desk, who then dispatched animal control to remove the reptile from the room and called Poison Control to treat MacHugh.
"I'm not going to say this wasn't an accident and done on purpose," said Boise manager Barrett Callahan, "but I know there is a past between our front office and the Crusaders' general manager. I wouldn't put it past those guys if they followed through on a prank like this."
Representatives of the Crusaders did not comment on the incident when asked, however later that morning, the California Crusader Twitter account (@CACrusaders) posted the following message:
MacHugh received treatment onsite at the team hotel but was taken to a local hospital for further evaluation. While his injury is not life threatening, MacHugh is expected to miss two weeks recovering from the bite. Boise has yet to determine who will replace MacHugh on the active roster.
