Padres Catcher Austin Nola Learned Shocking News That Led to Struggles in 2023

The 2023 season for the San Diego Padres just seems to be getting weirder and weirder. They entered the year with the expectation of competing for a title, but that hope has taken a turn for the worse.

The team finds itself in a deep hole, and their playoff chances are looking very bleak at the moment. They have seen a strong team on paper, struggle to find any sort of consistency this season.

But recently, it came to light that one of their players had been dealing with an unfortunate issue. Catcher Austin Nola decided to do some neurology and ophthalmology tests in the hope that he could figure out what has gone wrong for him this season.

He struggled to see the baseball effectively and finally got some answers to his struggles.

“Nola had not played since Aug. 2 and was finally placed on El Paso’s injured list Saturday. The official diagnosis is oculomotor dysfunction, a vision issue that impacts the brain’s ability to coordinate eye movement. It could provide an answer as to why Nola wasn’t tracking the ball as well as he was in spring training.”

Per Jeff Sanders of The SD Union-Tribune

The veteran had never dealt with anything like this, so his decision to get checked can now be seen as a blessing. It makes sense why he struggled this season, and now he can move forward to recovery.

“I’m so thankful to get some clarity on it,” the 33-year-old Nola said by phone. “I just couldn’t figure it out. I just didn’t know why I wasn’t seeing the ball.”

Per The SD Union-Tribune

It has also allowed him to see things from a different perspective as well. He now believes that it is a good idea for all catchers to get their eyes checked on a more consistent basis. If it can happen to him, it really can happen to anyone.

“I feel like I’m getting on the road to recovery,” he said.

Per The SD Union-Tribune

On the year, he was hitting .146 with one home run and eight runs batted in. The hope is that he can fully recover and get back to feeling like himself soon.