From Philly Sports Daily:
It was a bizarre scene. The Cardinals team hugging and high-fiving, celebrating victory in the NLDS, while Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard was on the ground halfway between home and first, writhing in pain.
The early diagnosis is a left Achilles' injury.
“I felt a pop,” said Howard. “It went numb and it felt like it was on fire.” Howard said that the training staff believes it is an Achilles' tear, and an MRI on Saturday will provide more details.
“Just tried to keep going and went down and literally felt like I was on a flat tire,” Howard said.
Howard had to be helped off the field by third base coach Juan Samuel and a team trainer. He entered the Phillies clubhouse on crutches, still in his full uniform.
For the second straight postseason, it all came down to Howard. Trailing 1-0 with two outs and no one on base in the ninth inning, the Phils slugger was the team’s last chance to extend the game and the season.
Last year, in a similar situation in the NLCS against San Francisco, Howard looked at a called third strike, ending that series and the 2010 season.
This time, Howard swung, but grounded out to second base. He came up limp as he ran out of the box, and finally crumpled to the ground in obvious pain. Meanwhile a few feet away, upon registering the final out, the Cardinals celebrated their stunning, three games to two series win.
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