When Chad Patrick walked behind the mound before the top of the second inning and mouthed “I can’t see,” he wasn’t exaggerating.
For a handful of seconds April 28 during the Milwaukee Brewers’ game against the Arizona Diamondbacks – seconds that probably felt more like hours to the right-hander – Patrick literally could not see.
“I had a little scare there in the second inning,” Patrick said. “I was pretty worried for myself for a second, but everything feels normal. Just felt like I couldn’t see for a good 15, 20 seconds. That’s why I took my hat off and everything. I feel good now.”
The good news for Patrick, aside from earning the win in a 13-2 victory at American Family Field, was his sight came back and he was able to pitch five innings. Team physicians checked Patrick’s blood pressure after his outing and everything came back normal.
But for a brief moment as Patrick unusually walked off the mound while warming up for his second inning, it didn’t look so optimistic.
“I felt like my eyeballs were at the top of my head and it was blurry,” Patrick said. “It was a weird feeling.”
Once his vision stopped spinning and came back, Patrick took a couple deep breaths and completed his warm-up tosses. He walked the first batter he faced, but after that said everything felt properly recalibrated.
Patrick said he’s used to dealing with an upset stomach from nerves on days he starts and was throwing up before the game against Arizona. It’s unclear if that had anything to do with his vision issues.
“The stomach thing is pretty normal for me on start days,” Patrick said. “It just comes with it. It was just a different feeling. But I feel fine, feel better now.”
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee Brewers starter briefly lost his vision on the mound during game
Reporting by Curt Hogg, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
