News
Gonzalez in slow, but steady recovery
Second baseman went on DL on July 20 with concussion
By Amy Brittain / MLB.com
08/04/09 10:40 PM ET
SAN DIEGO -- It's been more than two weeks since Padres second baseman Edgar Gonzalez experienced the most frightening moment of his baseball career: a 93-mph fastball that struck him in the head and caused him to collapse at home plate.Gonzalez went on the 15-day disabled list on July 20 with a concussion, and he's since progressed at a slow but steady rate.
That progression hit a road bump on Monday when Gonzalez experienced a setback in his vertigo symptoms. He tried to rest in a completely flat position, which caused a room-spinning perception which Gonzalez thought he had overcome in his rehabilitation efforts.
After a visit to the doctor on Tuesday, Gonzalez was ordered to rest for three days.
"They pushed me back and did a little manipulation with my head to try to get my balance back," Gonzalez said. "I can't move my head up or down for three days. They said everything should be fine."
Gonzalez had been participating in standard baseball activities before the checkup.
"I can run. I can hit. I can throw. I can field ... I can do everything," Gonzalez said. "But they don't want to send me out there unless I'm exactly the way I was before I got hurt. And I'm not exactly the way I was before I got hurt."
Gonzalez said isn't sure if a flood of fear will go through his mind when he goes to the plate for the first time since the accident.
"It doesn't really come into my mind," Gonzalez said. "I don't know if it's going to happen, but it might. Once I'm up there, my competitive nature might take over, or I might think about it."
Before his injury, Gonzalez was hitting .190 in 64 appearances this season for the Padres.
Amy Brittain is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
