The news was far worse than Alex Fernandez or the Florida Marlins ever feared, so devastating that it caused the pitcher to cry in the clubhouse.
A day after he was hit hard in Game 2 of the NL championship series, Fernandez found out the problem Thursday: His rotator cuff is completely torn, an injury that will likely sideline him through next season and could end his career."I don't want to say this is a tragedy, because that implies someone died," Marlins general manager Dave Dombrowski said. "But in baseball, this is a tragedy."
Never on the disabled list in his eight major league seasons, Fernandez, 28, had been bothered by a sore right shoulder in the second half of the year. He had planned to get it checked but never expected to hear such a result.
"It could be probably a full season, a year or a year and a half," he said, his voice cracking with emotion. "Hopefully it's less than the prognosis."
But there also was the possibility - though no one dared say so - that Fernandez, finishing up the first season of a five-year, $35 million contract, could be out much longer, maybe forever.
Because, as Atlanta ace Tom Glavine made clear, a rotator cuff injury for pitchers "is like a kiss of death."
For the immediate future, Fernandez will undergo surgery and the Marlins will shuffle their playofff rotation. Rookie Livan Hernandez will start in place of Fernandez if Game 6 is necessary.
The Marlins and Braves are tied at 1 going into tonight's Game 3 at Pro Player Stadium. Rookie Tony Saunders starts for Florida against John Smoltz.
A record crowd of 55,000 is expected to turn out for the first NLCS game in Florida.