Getty Images; Courtesy of Angela Unkrich/Instagram
Alfonso Ribeiro Gives Update After Son AJ Is Hit in the Eye With Baseball During Practice
Alfonso Ribeiro has spoken out after his eldest son, AJ, was hit in the eye with a baseball during a recent practice with his team.
“When you play baseball, you’re gonna get hit with a ball at some point or another, right?” Alfonso, 52, told People of his son’s injury in an interview published on Monday, June 24.
“That’s part of the game. The field is imperfect. It isn’t always great grass, right? The dirt isn’t smooth all the time,” he added. “And in practice, the coach hit the ball. He was fielding the ball at shortstop.”
The Dancing With the Stars host went on to explain that the ball “caught a bad hop” and hit his son right in the eye on the field.
“But he’s doing fine,” Alfonso assured fans. “The black eye is gone. He’s back to playing baseball and injuring more parts of his body every day.”
“It’s just what he does, and he finds new ways to injure himself on a daily basis. And it’s called 10, and being a boy. I love it,” the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air alum concluded.
Alfonso also shares kids Anders and Ava with wife Angela Unkrich, as well as daughter Sienna with ex-wife Robin Stapler.
Angela first shared news of AJ’s gruesome injury in a video posted on her Instagram account on June 14. The video showed photos of the healing process of her son’s black eye as she revealed what methods she used to help the swelling go down, including Tobacco leaves and castor oil.
News of AJ’s sports-related injury came one year after Alfonso and Angela revealed that Ava, 5, ended up in the ER after sustaining injuries from a scooter accident.
“My poor baby. I woke up and had a vision/motherly intuition of Ava ending up in the ER today. I announced to the fam, kids, sitter & friends helping out getting ready for Ava’s birthday party that ‘we are not doing anything crazy or dangerous today that could potentially end up with an ER visit.’ I literally made everyone lock eyes to me when I said these words,” Angela captioned an Instagram post in May 2023 showing Ava’s injuries. “Sadly, my words were soon forgotten and long story short, this poor girl crashed off a sit-down scooter … the day before her bday.”
Ava underwent emergency surgery where doctors “had to scalpel off all the skin” that was impacted by her fall. After the surgery, Ava celebrated her 4th birthday with her family’s support.
“Happy Birthday to my sweet Ava Sue. As some of you know Ava had a very difficult week,” Alfonso captioned a post on his Instagram page dedicated to his youngest child. “I’m so proud of how well she handled everything. She’s so brave strong and creative. I love everything about my little girl. On a side note I’m forever grateful to @mrsangelaribeiro1 for being so amazing during this time. Long nights with a little girl in pain and having to apply medication every few hours. My two heroes.”
