According to the Associated Press, St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Rick Ankiel was released from a hospital yesterday (Tues., May 5) after tests showed he sustained no significant injuries while crashing headfirst into the wall a night earlier.
He’s far too sore to play, and didn’t play Tuesday night when the Cards lost to the Philadelphia Phillies. In fact, he left Busch Stadium several hours before gametime to have a doctor examine his sore left shoulder.
The team postponed a decision whether to place him on the 15-day disabled list, depending on how much better he’s feeling in a few days. St. Louis manager Tony La Russa said Ankiel was “beat-up,” but added, “It’s worth waiting a couple of days because there wasn’t anything broken. Just in case he can go.”
X-rays and a CT scan of Ankiel’s head, neck and back showed no fractures.
Ankiel chased down Pedro Feliz’s long drive in the eighth inning against the Phillies but couldn’t stop himself from crashing into the padded center-field wall. He took 2 1/2 off-balance steps after making the tough catch and took the ball out of his glove before attempting to brace himself with his left arm.
Still, his head appeared to absorb most of the blow.
The 3-inch padded wall in left-center no doubt spared Ankiel from serious injury. Right fielder Ryan Ludwick said the wall was hard, “but it’s not like concrete.”
“He just lunged into it,” La Russa said. “The padding’s definitely better than if there had been no padding, but it was still a shock.”
Information from the Associated Press contributed to this report.