Anthony Rizzo’s post-concussion syndrome diagnosis was revealing.
And not just for himself.
Padres catcher Austin Nola saw the news about Rizzo’s prolonged cognitive issues and thought it sounded familiar.
Nola, whose brother Aaron is a pitcher for the Phillies, broke his nose during spring training in March after taking a pitch to the face.
He returned to baseball activities just three days later and was the team’s opening day starting catcher.
But Nola struggled through a nightmarish start to the season, slashing .146/.260/.192 with a .452 OPS in 52 games before the Padres demoted him to Triple-A El Paso.
After his struggles continued in Triple-A — slashing .185/.267/.222 with a .489 OPS in eight games — and Nola saw Rizzo’s diagnoses, he halted his assignment and underwent a series of neurological and ophthalmology tests, according to The San Diego Tribune.
Nola was subsequently diagnosed with oculomotor dysfunction, a vision issue that impacts the brain’s ability to coordinate eye movement, per the report.
He hasn’t played since Aug. 8 and was placed on El Paso’s injured list on Saturday.
“I’m so thankful to get some clarity on it,” Nola told the outlet. “I just couldn’t figure it out. I just didn’t know why I wasn’t seeing the ball.”
Nola claimed that he felt foggy and experienced headaches throughout the season.
The test most notably revealed misaligned tracking with his left eye.
The Yankees placed Rizzo on the injured list on Aug. 3 with post-concussion syndrome, and a neurologist determined that it likely stemmed from an undiagnosed concussion he sustained during a May 28 game against the Padres.
Rizzo struggled mightily after the collision, telling reporters he woke up “feeling hungover” despite not drinking and experiencing fogginess, slow reaction times and vision problems.
He finally sought medical advice, and after undergoing a plethora of tests, it was determined he had a “cascading concussion” that was severely affecting his performance.
Rizzo has not yet returned from the injured list.
Nola passed MLB’s concussion protocol after his initial injury but doesn’t appear to hold any ill will toward the Padres’ medical staff for not realizing his own issue.
“I’m not pointing any fingers,” Nola, who wants to return to the field this season, said. “I feel like I’m getting on the road to recovery.”