BASEBALL / DAILY REPORT : Finley’s Elbow Survives

There wasn’t a lot of swelling in Chuck Finley’s left elbow Friday, but that had nothing to do with how hard the one-hop smash off the bat of Toronto’s Ed Sprague struck him Thursday night.

“It was an area that was mainly bone so there’s not much to swell,” Manager Marcel Lachemann said. “But I can’t think of a lot people who would have continued to pitch after that.”

The elbow went numb for a few seconds, but Finley--who had faced five batters and given up a home run, a walk and a single before Sprague’s ball hit him--rebounded to retire 15 of the next 16 batters.

“He was like one of those old TVs that you have to hit on the side when they’re out of whack,” said Jack Howell, who fielded the carom off Finley’s elbow and stepped on first to retire Sprague. “He was struggling and then he takes that shot and then all of sudden, it’s wooosh, wooosh, wooosh and he’s rolling right along.”

Finley said his elbow was sore to the touch but otherwise fine Friday.

“But that was one hell of a way to get an assist,” he said.