Four injury red flags
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Four injury red flags
Matt Gelb, Inquirer Staff Writer
There is too much to discuss in the wake of Wednesday's 10-6 loss to the Mets that dropped the Phillies four games below .500 for the first time in 1,827 days. In the immediate, the Phillies have myriad injury concerns.
Start with Laynce Nix, who appears headed to the disabled list. Nix was limited by a sore left calf for two days. He pinch-hit in the sixth and delivered an RBI single. He could barely make it to first base.
"He said he could hit," Charlie Manuel said, "so I let him hit."
Nix said he didn't tell the Phillies he was 100 percent, but that he could hit.
"I didn't know it was going to get worse," he said.
He will go for an MRI during Thursday's off day. He said the disabled list was a "possibility, yes."
>>> Carlos Ruiz did not take batting practice Wednesday and pinch-ran for Nix. Ruiz was wearing a large black brace on his left arm/wrist. He obviously was not available to hit.
Information on his ailment is foggy. But Ruiz did miss two games with a left wrist sprain in late April. It certainly bears watching.
>>> Ty Wigginton iced his sore left side after the Wednesday loss. He said he was available to hit but played coy when asked for details of his injury. He said doctors saw him Wednesday. When asked if they had diagnosed soreness, he said, "You could call it that." Then he smiled.
So there could be more to Wigginton's injury, too.
>>> And Chad Qualls might be the most nebulous of them all. Qualls has thrown three pitches in the last five days but was unavailable Wednesday. That's why Kyle Kendrick was hung out to dry. With Antonio Bastardo having thrown 38 pitches in the last two days, Jose Contreras was the eighth-inning man. It never reached him.
So why was Qualls down?
"We were trying, kinda to stay away from him," Manuel said.
Was there a reason why?
"No," Manuel said. "We were just staying away from him. He's healthy."
Qualls did wear a small brace on his left knee after the game. He was unavailable for comment. Keep an eye on his status, too.
Needless to say, the day off Thursday comes at a fortuitous time.
Have a question? Send it to Matt Gelb's Mailbag.
Comment removed.- Comment removed.
Look at the positive side, they should get a good draft pick; maybe in the top 5.— sixtyplus- Isn't it about time to part ways with Kendrick? Let's see what some of the young arms in Reading and Lehigh Valley can do in the bigs. surely they can't compile a worse record than some of the old folks in the 'Pen.— drbob456
- I guess it is impossible to find any players in the twenties that have a few years major league service. Having such an old roster lends itself to injuries and declining abilities, that's just a fact. And for the Phillies, both are being proven on a daily basis.— MrPhillie
- and who could have thunk that a 40-year old Thome with back problems for years, who hadn't had pinch hit or fielded in years, would have back problems and couldn't get a hit or field.... who could possibly think that Dontrelle Willis who hadn't had his era under 5.0 in 5 straight years and hadn't been able to get anyone out in 5 years would amazingly prove to be an unreliable option for the bullpen.. and who would think that Qualls who hasn't been able to get out any lefties for years - with lefties batting over .300 against him -- and had no success last year outside of San Dielgo --would prove unreliable... and wo would have thunk that Schwimmer and Herndon and Kendrick who have never been able to get anyone out ever consistently at the major league level would be unreliable.... and who would think that over 42 year Contreras who's been injured for years and hasn't been reliable forever woud be unrelable.. and who would think that Howard who serioulsy injured his Achilles and could be out for up to a year could indeed be out for much of the year.. and who would have thunk that Utley who's been hurting and injured for years would be huring and injured... no, not the rube's fault that the sun sets in the west and expected things happened— warbiscuit
- And the crazy thing is, we all saw this coming. As they signed guys like Willis, Qualls, Nix, Wigginton, Pierre and even Thome, and resigned Jimmy Popup and Schneider, we were shaking our collective heads and questioning the plan.— blaqjaq
- plan? what plan? who said anything about a plan? there's a plan? ...might be time to break-it-out, or better yet, get one. don't fret, the farm is full of young talent just waiting to...oh never mind...— nyphilliephan
- Do the Phillies have a competent training crew? Since Spring training players have been going down left and right. Makes one wonder if they can do better.— richw38
- meanwhile guys like Beltran,Melky, Willingham....all having great seasons..all were available. Heck Ibanez is hitting .270 with 5 HR's 16 RBI for 1.1M. Cody Ransom hitting .312 with 4HR. Either resign Cole or trade him.— repski
- Remember Bob Brookover's silly article in April with the headline: "Age is not among problems facing the Phillies"? Any other insights now?— TomO
- Do the Phils do any in-season conditioning? I don't buy the idea that healthy athletes in their 30's can't withstand the rigors of baseball. I suspect that this isn't a well-conditioned team. People on the team marvel at Halladay's self-imposed regimen because it bears no relation to the conditioning they are doing.— Claudio Vernight
- TomO, I was going to mention the same thing.— EL Zorro
- It's an old, broken team that will struggle to not finish last this year.— farley
- It is time to break up the band. And that includes the pitching staff. I would bet alot the Phils could get a ton of prospects for Roy and Cliff. Trade Victorino for something. They are stuck with Utley and Howard, no need at this point to rush Howard back. Do they commit long term with Pence?— beegal99
