Cody Ross gets the night off

Cody Ross got the night off last night.

Outfielder Cody Ross took a Russ Springer fastball on the left arm in the sixth inning of Tuesday's victory over the Cardinals and refused to come out of the game despite being in pain.

Ross said the spot where he was hit -- just above the elbow -- swelled after the game and he was taken out of the lineup Wednesday. Ross pinch-ran in the eighth inning.

''It's a little swollen and a little bruised so they decided to give me a little rest,'' said Ross, who also was hit in the back by Mike Pelfrey on Sunday at New York. ``It flared up right away. I was trying to throw in the outfield and I had a little problem doing that. But I wanted to stay in for defensive reasons. That was a big game for us. I didn't want to come out. But it was getting worse. It really tightened up on me.''

Would someone please take the "Hit Me" sign off Cody's back.

Cody is tougher than nails and I'm sure he will be back in the lineup before any normal person would consider returning.  Now, that doesn't mean he heals faster than a normal person, just that gutting out pain is what he does.

I didn't say that is necessarily a good thing, but that is what's going to happen.