Chicago Cubs closer Porter Hodge got the save in Tuesday night’s 6-3 over the Dodgers but not without some drama, some of which was concerning.
With two outs in the ninth and Max Muncy at the plate, Hodge stepped off the rubber and walked around the mound. Catcher Miguel Amaya, manager Craig Counsell, the athletic trainer and teammates met him.
Hodge, a 23-year-old right-hander who has five saves since taking over closing duties late in the season, appeared to rub his chest. He then went down to one knee with the trainer talking to him.
“We noticed he was just going super fast, and then at some point, his heart was racing, and just to the point where he was concerned a little bit,” Counsell said, according to MLB.com. “He said it had happened to him before, and it would go away, and nothing would be of it. So it took him a couple minutes, but it went away, and he said, ‘I’m good to go.'”
Hodge ended up getting Muncy to hit a fly ball that almost left the park for a two-run homer, but center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong leapt and took the ball back — ending the game.
Afterward, Counsell said the team is considering further testing on Hodge, who has been cleared to pitch after experiencing the elevated heart rate in the past.