First baseman Mark Reynolds is one of the toughest players in the Orioles' clubhouse. He hates sitting out and refuses to complain about injuries and never uses that as an excuse for his struggles.
So when his left biceps went numb during two at-bats in Saturday's 5-2 loss to the Oakland A's, he pushed through it. Orioles manager Buck Showalter, along with athletic trainer Richie Bancells, visited Reynolds at the plate in the fourth to make sure he was OK.
Showalter addressed the situation after the game.
"The previous at-bat he took a hard swing with his biceps in his left arm, it had just gone numb on him," Showalter said. "It came back for him. We will see how he is tomorrow."
Reynolds received treatment on the arm post-game, and when he was approached by reporters, he completely downplayed the injury. Actually, he acted as if it didn't exist in what became a playful and humorous exchange with reporters.
He was asked about the injury.
"Nothing," Reynolds said. "We can talk about the game."
He was asked about Bancells' and Showalter's plate visit.
"They were just asking me if I was seeing the ball OK," he said.
He was told Showalter said he had biceps numbness.
"I don't know where he was getting his info," Reynolds said.
He said he was "100 percent." And when we pushed a little more he said, "It was a rough game that's all. You're not getting anything from me."
Actually, we did get something else from him. A pretty hilarious quote as we were walking away. He was told that cameras showed him rubbing his arm during the at-bat.
“I just massage myself every now and then,” Reynolds said with a half-smile. “It makes me feel better.”