Nobody was willing to admit what happened to Dom Brown and John Lannan on Tuesday night was a major problem.
And when is “denial” not a sign of great things to come?!
Apr 16, 2013; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Philadelphia Phillies left fielder Domonic Brown warms up on deck against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: David Kohl-USA TODAY Sports
The Phillies were in the middle of losing 11-2 to the Reds, a loss largely on the shoulders of Lannan and his terrible start. The recently back-to-earth fifth starter couldn’t even give the bullpen two innings to get loose before being shelled by all manner of Reds; the good player, the bad players, even the Red’s starting pitcher tripled off of him.
Of course, it wasn’t until after the game that Lannan revealed he had “tweaked” his knee while bunting during his last start in Miami and felt off tonight starting with the third batter of the game. He swears he’s played through it during previous experiences with the same injury, but “played through” is such a relative term when you’re giving up six runs in one and two thirds innings.
Elsewhere, Dom Brown took a wrong step on a fly ball in the first inning and was forced to dive, immediately hearing a “pop” in his back. He felt pain in his lower back and was replaced by Ezequiel Carrera not much later. This is a whole new area for Dom to start injuring, putting even further dampers on his big break out season.
Brown’s getting MRI’d Thursday, but everybody in the clubhouse from the players to the GM are acting like this is all no big deal. Which probably stems as a side effect from “general numbness,” rather than being a form of confidence of any kind.