MILWAUKEE (AP) — Milwaukee pitcher Chad Patrick experienced vision trouble that caused the Brewers’ training staff to check him on the mound before the second inning of a 13-2 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Tuesday.
Patrick said after the game he was feeling better, but acknowledged it was a scary situation for that brief period.
“It felt like I couldn’t see for a good 15-20 seconds,” Patrick said.
Patrick stayed in the game and allowed two runs over five innings as the winning pitcher.
Brewers manager Pat Murphy said Patrick also had vomited between innings. Patrick said the stomach issues are customary for him on days when he’s pitching.
But this vision problem was something he hadn’t experienced before.
“It felt like my eyeballs were at the top of my head,” Patrick said. “It was like blurry, kind of. I don’t know. It was a weird feeling, a feeling I definitely don’t want to have again.”
As the Brewers’ staff went to check on him, television cameras showed Patrick rubbing his eyes and saying, “I can’t see” at one point.
“When he got back out there, the blood kind of rushed to his head or whatever and he couldn’t focus for a minute,” Murphy said.
Patrick eventually took a few warmup pitches before the game resumed. He walked Adrian Del Castillo to start the second inning before retiring the next two batters on a liner and a double-play grounder.
The 27-year-old right-hander said he started feeling better after allowing that leadoff walk. He ended up striking out five while giving up five walks and just one hit in his five-inning stint.
Patrick said he had his blood pressure taken after leaving the game and that everything seemed fine.
“It was just a different feeling (before the second inning),” Patrick said. “I feel fine. I feel better now.”
