Will Rhymes faints after getting hit in arm with pitch, is OK

Now that we know Will Rhymes of the Tampa Bay Rays is OK, the following video isn't quite so scary. It's still off-putting, though:

Whoa! Answer Man down, Answer Man down! There's no fainting in baseball! It's funny, now, that when trainers asked Rhymes to tell them his name, he said, "I'm Batman." Here's a guy with a sharp mind on his shoulders.

But in the moments after Rhymes' legs fell limp and he collapsed into the embrace of coach George Hendrick, speculation on Twitter abounded. He was hit on the arm, not on the head or thorax — so what happened? Did the major bruise cause a circulatory problem? Had he broken a bone and gone into shock? What gives, (other than his legs)?

Well, Dr. skipper Joe Maddon had a diagnosis after the game: Adrenaline rush. When the juices get flowing, it can work against you too, apparently.

''He got kind of rubber-legged right there,'' Maddon said. ''That stuff hurts. I know it's in the arm, but that can definitely take your breath away. It was described to me as kind of an adrenalin rush that caused that reaction.''

X-rays were negative and the team said Rhymes is day to day with a bruised right forearm.

Phew. Rhymes had put a scare into everyone, especially pitcher Franklin Morales of Boston, who threw the pitch. Via the Twitter of Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal:

"That scared me. ... I feel bad for him. I'm going to call him and talk to him. I want to know he's fine."

Now, just tell us that you'll never faint again, Rhymes:

"I got to first and started getting real dizzy, nauseous. That's when I started walking off. And then, apparently, I didn't get real far."

He's laughing about it. Good for Rhymes. In our society, perhaps in any society, it's supposed to be embarrassing when men faint. No crying, no fainting. Not allowed. Even for short guys such as Rhymes. Perhaps the example Rhymes is setting will allow oppressed male fainters across the world to rise up (with some assistance from their first-base coach) and say, "Yes, I fainted. What about it?"

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