PHILADELPHIA — A Washington Nationals staff member suffered a medical emergency during batting practice Wednesday afternoon at Citizens Bank Park, prompting Washington to cancel its pregame session as players and coaches left the field distraught.
After the game, manager Dave Martinez said that the staffer, James Frisbie, was resting at a Philadelphia hospital but that the team did not yet know his condition or why he collapsed.
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“We haven’t heard anything as far as results-wise, but he is coherent,” Martinez said. “He’s feeling better. A lot of prayers are going out his way. His brother made it to the hospital, so his brother’s there with him right now. Scary moment for all of us. He’s a big part of our Nats family.”
Frisbie was throwing to hitters during the first round of BP, but then paused. As his body began to shake, players and coaches rushed to help him to the ground. Emergency medical technicians located at the end of the Philadelphia Phillies’ dugout rushed to the mound. Athletic trainers from both Washington and Philadelphia assisted. The staffer was treated and placed on a backboard before being driven off the field and to a local hospital about 90 minutes before first pitch.
As medical personnel attended to Frisbie, Washington’s players and coaches kneeled around him. They quietly shuffled into the clubhouse after he was taken to an ambulance.
Martinez said the team held a clubhouse meeting before the game, a 7-2 loss to the Phillies.
“You see him go down like that and you don’t know what to think,” Martinez said. “We’re just waiting on results, and hopefully everything’s OK.”
Frisbie, 52, has managed clubs in six different independent leagues. Before working with the Nationals, the Detroit Tigers had used him as a left-handed batting practice specialist.
(Photo: G Fiume / Getty Images)
