Cora Out of Hospital and Lineup

Alex Cora remembers Arizona shortstop Tony Womack coming across the second base bag to field a throw from the catcher, and he remembers lying face-first in the dirt, listening to Dodger trainer Matt Wilson ask him questions.

The 30-45 seconds in between are a blank. The Dodger shortstop has no memory of Monday night’s bone-jarring collision with Womack, the result of Cora’s head-first dive into Womack’s right knee in the ninth inning. He has no memory of his neck snapping back upon impact, a blow that knocked Cora unconscious.

But he does remember feeling a strange sense of calm, even while his wife, Nildamarie, was so distraught she had to be physically restrained from running out to her husband, and while a hush fell over the Dodger Stadium crowd as Cora lay virtually motionless for 12 minutes before being taken away in an ambulance.

“They told me not to move, but there was no panic, no fear,” Cora said. “They started asking me questions, and I knew where I was. They touched me, and I felt everything.”

Cora was transported to Good Samaritan Hospital, where X-rays and a CT scan were negative. Cora was diagnosed with what Dr. Michael Mellman, team physician, called a “moderate” concussion, and he will be sidelined for at least several days.

But there was no serious neck injury, which came as a huge relief to the Dodgers, who lost Monday night’s game, 6-3, in 12 innings, when the Diamondbacks rallied for three runs in the 12th off reliever Guillermo Mota.

“For the first time in my life, I really didn’t want to be on a baseball field after that happened,” catcher Paul Lo Duca said. “[Cora] is one of my best friends, and to see him not moving for that long, to see his wife ... that was pretty scary.”

Cora remained hospitalized overnight for tests and observation, and he was released Tuesday morning. He was back in uniform Tuesday afternoon and took early batting practice, but he did have a headache.

“He looks and sounds normal, but there’s still lingering evidence of the trauma he sustained,” Mellman said. “There’s a heaviness in his head, the result of his brain swelling a bit. He just doesn’t feel right.”

Doctors will monitor Cora closely over the next few days, and when he feels right, he’ll resume running and lifting weights. Though Cora expects to return this weekend, Mellman admitted Cora could be out “for days, weeks, or months. You never know with a concussion.”

When Cora does return, he plans to heed the advice of his pregnant wife.

“She said to slide feet first from now on,” Cora said. “No more head-first dives. I’m going to slide. I’m going to try to be more conscious of that.”

Cora said his injury was probably the result of “bad base-running.” After walking to open the ninth, Cora took a huge secondary lead as Jolbert Cabrera squared to bunt. After Cabrera missed, Cora felt he was as close to second base as he was to first, so he took off for second and was out on Womack’s tag.

“One of the guys on television said I was trying to knock the ball out of his glove--that wasn’t the case,” Cora said. “The shortstop got there a little late, the throw was up the line, I was trying to figure out how I was going to get to the bag. I had no room, so I just jumped.

“I was trying to protect myself, and [Womack] was trying to do the same thing because he was right there. Thank God both of us are all right.”

Womack hopped around in pain for a minute or two, but he remained in the game and played Tuesday night.

“I lost the feeling in my knee for a few minutes,” Womack said. “But when the other guy is not moving, you tend to forget what’s wrong with you.”