"Lucky" Soriano leaves hospital
The day after a baseball traveling in excess of 100 mph sent him from the pitching mound to the hospital, doctors pronounced Rafael Soriano both fortunate and lucky — or as lucky and fortunate as possible for a uy who took a line drive off his skull.
The Mariners reliever spent Tuesday night at Harborview Medical Center in the intensive-care unit, and remained there Wednesday morning and afternoon for tests. Satisfied with the results, doctors released Soriano later in the afternoon. It is unclear how soon he will return to pitching, a secondary concern to his overall health the past two days.
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Soriano had a second CT scan in the morning, along with a physical-therapy evaluation (walking, balance, etc.) in the afternoon, and after both tests, doctors were convinced he suffered only the mild concussion and no further brain injury.
Doctors also found Soriano articulate in both Spanish and English, and in good spirits. Family members who gathered at Harborview Medical Center told doctors that Soriano seemed normal.
The swelling on his head occurred outside, not internally, and Soriano still had what doctors called a "goose egg" behind his ear Wednesday that continued to cause him pain. He was taking medication for his headaches, but even those appeared to be improving.
"It hurts where the ball hit," Ellenbogen deadpanned when asked if Soriano had any complaints. "But he's pretty stoic. He's pretty bright and alert and cooperative and doing much better than anybody would have predicted if they watched that TV replay."
To pitchers, ignorance a blessing ... and a curse
"When he does return, you have to figure out, 'How do I deal with this fear issue now?' " said Dave Valle, a Mariners broadcast analyst and a former major-league catcher. "You have to wonder, 'How do I get back to where I was without having thoughts in the back of my head?' You don't want him to be like, 'I don't want to throw pitches on the outside corner because it might come back to me.' "
Valle doesn't believe it will be an issue for Soriano, a 26-year-old who already has come back from Tommy John surgery, but who knows for sure?
A smokin' line drive to the cranium off Vladimir Guerrero's bat no less will present a dicey mental challenge. Wednesday, a day after the incident, few at Safeco Field seemed to have recovered from witnessing the trauma.
"Gruesome," Valle said, shaking his head. "Just the ball hitting the flesh, it's like something hitting a watermelon, a hollow and then gushing sound."
Valle recognizes the sound too easily. Spend a life in baseball, and that sound will nag.
He can hear Brad Holman taking one off the head in 1993 in Texas. The late Kirby Puckett unintentionally clocked Steve Shields in the cheek in 1987. Matt Young took one in 1983. It happened to Billy Swift, too.
"It's always tough to see," Valle said. "It brought back some bad memories."
M's Notebook: Big sigh of relief for Guerrero
Everyone at Safeco Field was breathing a sigh of relief Wednesday about Rafael Soriano's hopeful prognosis, but no one more so than Vladimir Guerrero.
It was Guerrero, of course, who hit the line drive in the eighth inning on Tuesday that hit Soriano flush in the head and led to considerable consternation about his health.
The Angels' superstar was so concerned he went to Harborview Medical Center after the game to check on Soriano, a fellow Dominican and long-time acquaintance.
"I feel a lot better knowing he's OK," Guerrero said through an interpreter. "Just knowing he didn't have any fractures, I feel a lot better. ... I don't want anything bad to happen to any player; even more so to a player from my own country. We're pretty good friends."
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