Braves second baseman Martin Prado said Friday he was feeling better, but he still wasn’t ready to resume baseball activities.
He was out of the lineup for the third day, after returning home from New York on Wednesday to be examined by Dr. Richard Bernstein, a neurologist for the Falcons, at St. Joseph’s Hospital. Prado was diagnosed with exertional headaches after he had sudden-onset headaches after during at-bats both Saturday and Tuesday.
Prado was not optimistic that he would return for this weekend series against the Marlins. He was planning to do only some light weight-lifting and stretching today but wasn’t sure when he’d swing again.
“I think tomorrow I’ll start doing my stuff and getting back in my routine,” Prado said Friday afternoon. “But swinging hard, he doesn’t want me to do that.”
Prado is being treated with anti-inflammatory medication and is scheduled to have a follow-up appointment Monday. When asked if he’d be able to play before Monday, Prado said “I don’t think so.”
When asked if he was still feeling the headaches, he said “just a little bit.”
Prado said his headache Tuesday night in New York was much worse than his first one, lasting the rest of the game after he came out in the first inning. He said his headache Saturday lasted only 30 minutes. He’s still having trouble sleeping.
Seeing him this way is something new for the Braves and manager Bobby Cox.
“He’s always upbeat and ready to go,” Cox said of the second baseman, who has given the Braves such a spark over the last six weeks. “We don’t see this.”
Exertional headaches are associated with strenuous activity such as running and weight-lifting. Prado said a lack of sleep, depression and stress could play a part as well.
Prado has been dealing with stress off the field because both his mother and brother had to return Monday to his native Venezuela after their six-month visas expired. Given the political and economic climate in Venezuela, that’s been weighing on Prado’s mind.
“I talked to my brother today,” Prado said. “They don’t want me to be worried about them [but] he said things are pretty bad there. Everything is getting so expensive and no jobs. It’s insecure. There’s a lot of robbing. No law. They rob and they kill, they don’t care. It’s sad, but we’ve got to deal with it.”
Prado said Bernstein considered prescribing Prado with an anti-depressant, but the Braves have to petition Major League Baseball to get permission in the event the medication causes him to test positive for a banned substance.
Health updates
● Garret Anderson was out of the lineup Friday night but said his tight right hip had loosened up overnight.
“Hopefully if it keeps loosening up, it’ll be fine in a few days,” said Anderson, who had to leave Thursday night’s game against the Mets in the second inning.
Anderson said he was encouraged that it has loosened up. It’s an injury he dealt with five years ago with the Angels.
“I’ve been able to maintain it the last five years or so,” he said.
Reid Gorecki made his first major-league start in left field in Anderson’s place.
● Nate McLouth said his sore left hamstring is improving and he hopes to give it a test, running as soon as Saturday. His manager might have something to say about that though.
“He doesn’t need to,” Cox said. “We’re trying to get him to take [time] off and let it heal.”
McLouth is eligible to come off the disabled list on Aug. 31 and believes he’ll be ready by then.
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