Davey dismisses report on Storen's Game 5 pain

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- When asked about a CBSSports.com report that surfaced Friday night saying closer Drew Storen pitched Game 5 of the 2012 National League Division Series against the Cardinals with "excruciating pain," manager Davey Johnson said he was unaware of any such issues.

"The only thing I recall is [Storen] didn't throw many strikes," Johnson said, "and I attribute it to trying to be too fine."

Johnson said he hasn't had any discussions with Storen about any physical problems. Jon Heyman's report says Storen was dealing with back spasms and quotes outfielder Jayson Werth.

"He was having real bad back spasms," Werth told Heyman. "That was the third day [pitching] in a row. He was banged up, man. No one knew. For him to just have the [guts] to go out there, that says a lot about him. ... I'm not blaming his injury. He just wasn't healthy."

Heyman wrote that "only after being confronted with the information did [Storen] offer even a reluctant acknowledgement that maybe he wasn't quite 100 percent, and that maybe he did receive a little treatment."

"I was all right. I was good. I was out there," Storen says in the report. "It's all right, I grinded. I wanted to be out there. I was going to do it no matter what."

Storen inherited a two-run lead in the ninth inning of the decisive game and pitched the Nationals within one strike of the NL Championship Series twice, but couldn't finish the deal. The Nationals lost, 9-7, and were eliminated.

After pitching a scoreless inning in both Games 3 and 4, earning a win in Game 4, Storen was charged with three hits, two walks and four runs in the Game 5 loss.

"A lot of guys are used to having nagging injuries that time of year, but I don't think anybody was overly tired," Johnson said. "I attribute more to inexperience in the situation and trying to do too much."

Neither Werth nor Storen made the Nationals' trip to Port St. Lucie on Saturday for their Spring Training opener against the Mets.