Blanton to seek second opinion on elbow
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Blanton to seek second opinion on elbow
Matt Gelb, Inquirer Staff Writer
The Phillies are still unsure of the problems inside Joe Blanton's right elbow, and they are sending the pitcher for an ultrasound examination Tuesday followed by a visit to Dr. James Andrews, the renowned orthopedist, on Wednesday.
Those are words a pitcher never wants to hear. Blanton expressed some doubt as to what is going on in his elbow. He will be prevented from throwing for at least 10 to 14 days and it could be longer depending on what the next two days find.
"It's still kind of up in the air," Blanton said.
Blanton said the original diagnosis of an impingement in his right elbow has led to tendinitis and inflammation. A second MRI done showed nothing new, other than another spot of inflammation.
The ultrasound could show if there are tendons or ligaments rubbing up against each other, causing the pain.
Blanton expects to miss at least a few weeks because the Phillies will be more deliberate in their rehab process. He missed just 16 days during his last stint on the disabled list. This time, he will definitely throw in at least one minor-league rehab game before returning.
And that's if the ultrasound and Andrews' examination show nothing significant.
Vance Worley will take Blanton's spot in the rotation Tuesday and for the unforeseen future.
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@peterlong: They already called up Vance to make the start tomorrow. I'm pretty sure they'll leave Kendrick in the bullpen after that spot start disaster against the Rockies last week.@mattgelb: The unforeseen future is much more mysterious than the foreseeable future.— drbob1
Comment removed.- Hopefully, he'll miss the rest of the season. He still gets paid just the same. With the Phillies anemic offense, they officially lost after the first few pitches. Not being mean spirited, just honest.— Justaschmuck
- Comment removed.
- Don't get too high on Worley. We've seem a lot of rookies look really good their first couple of times around the league. Once the hitters get the book on them, they become very mediocre. Bob Walk, and Marty Bystrom are good examples, as is.. dare I say it... Kyle Kendrick— Dragon76
- Big Joe was clutch in 2008 and is the BEST number 5 in baseball...but Vance Worley is better....nuff said...try to trade Big Joe and Kyle for a prospect or two...we need OF and IF help...— DavezMental.Com
- Best 5th starter in baseball! LOL! Yeah, if you take these two starts, but not the 5 before it, and these two months of 2010, but not the three before it. His ERA hasn't been below 4.0 since 2007 and was 4.82 last year. That means if Baez started, HE'D be the 'best fifth starter in baseball.' Give me a break. I hope he's fine but these post-ers who love Joe Blanton are kooks. I tell you what, join a Fantasy league, make him your fifth starter and tell us how that works for you.— eman
- Bye Joe....don't hurry back. Unless the Phils 'brass' is going to be dumb enough to try Kendrick over Worley again (at least Vance gets this start). Rather have Fat Joe than KK starting...any day.— Curse of Billy Penn
- Joe - that's what you get for thinking you were one of the Aces. Take a seat and see you next year in another uniform— anothervoice
- Worley just as good, if not better.
But this injury really hurts the team's chances of making any kind of trade this year— VicM - Life is hard, and then you die. So Long Joe.— NewMick314
- The problem for Amaro is that he needs Blanton to pitch if he ever has any hope to trade him. Otherwise, we are stuck with that eight million for next season. If Worley continues to pitch as well as he has to this point, Blanton should never get his spot back when he is healthy. But, I fear that Charlie and Amaro will put him in there so they can showcase him. This injury is not good for us but not for the reason most might think.— matty177
- Blanton was good when he was younger with Oakland. Over the last 3 or 4 year he's the poster for mediocrity. Now he doesn't have trade value and we get to keep him for another year and a half.— EL Zorro
- Wasn't Blanton 1-15 before when he came to Philly that year! Blanton has always been an average to above average innings eater. This is something that we didn't have in our previous pitching staff, and fit quite well. Now with our other Aces, people are going to be licking their chops with Joe b/c he doesn't have the Ace stuff, and in a 3 game series batters know they have a chance against him... — PhilliefaninAZ
- Maybe he can clear waivers and we can trade him before Sept 1. That's our best shot now. He won't be pitching anytime soon.— EL Zorro
