Oswalt to miss Saturday's start
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Oswalt to miss Saturday's start
Marc Narducci
Phillies righthander Roy Oswalt will miss his start on Saturday against the Atlanta Braves and it’s possible that he could go on the disabled list with back soreness.
Kyle Kendrick will get the start against the Braves. If Oswalt is put on the disabled list by Saturday, it would be backdated 10 days to when he last pitched. And if that is the case he could be activated as soon as Friday, May 13.
“I can play catch and I feel good but when I start letting it go I feel it still,” Oswalt said.
Oswalt last pitched April 26 in Arizona, allowing five earned runs in three innings during a 7-5 loss to the Diamondbacks.
The next day he left for his home in Weir, Mississippi to assess the damage of the tornadoes that swept through the area.
Oswalt returned to Philadelphia on Thursday and threw a bullpen session. He said he hadn’t thrown while away in Mississippi.
According to Oswalt, his back was hurting during his previous start, a 3-0 win on April 21 at San Diego. In that game Oswalt pitched six shutout innings, striking out seven.
“It started in San Diego and I didn’t’ tell anybody and kind of got through it and felt I’d be fine for Arizona too,” he said. “It’s not to the point where it was unbearable, but it is a little bit of a concern.”
Oswalt said that he would likely try to throw on Sunday or Monday and then make a determination from there. He also didn’t rule out pitching in a minor league game to test things out if he does go on the disabled list.
Kendrick hasn’t made a start this year but has made 83 career starts with the Phillies. He last pitched on Sunday, earning the loss with three innings of relief in the 2-1 14-inning loss to the visiting New York Mets. He threw 46 pitches.
“I definitely think I can go at least five (innings),” Kendrick said.
Manger Charlie Manuel and general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said that righthander Vance Worley could also see action on Saturday.
Worley threw six innings in Wednesday’s 7-4 win over Washington. He allowed one run and threw 94 pitches.
In other news, Amaro expressed confidence that Joe Blanton, who is on the disabled list with right elbow impingement, will be able to be activated and pitch on Monday.
Blanton threw a bullpen session on Thursday and will have another on Saturday.
Chase Utley, who has yet to play due to a sore right knee, will play in an extended spring training game on Saturday in Dunedin.
Catcher Carlos Ruiz, remains day to day with a sore back. Amaro said the team should know more about his status in a day or two. He has not played since April 27 against Arizona.
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Hard to be upset by this considering where he was and why.
The silver lining is we get a longer gander at Worley hopefully.— theBman- He has a back injury, and yet he was allowed to make two starts after sustaining it.— PhightinPhil
- Bman, I'm with you. This longer stay will be good experience for Worley and pay off for the Phils down the road.— Joe at the shore
Comment removed.- Comment removed.
- Speaking from Alabama, where I live amongst the destruction from the tornadoes, I can't help but wonder about this guy. The Phillies must be some kind of great organization that lets a multi-million dollar player take off to clear trees from ONE of his homes that took "3 full days" to do. Surely he could have hired someone to do that. Sure, he would want to check on things, but do all this work on his own with persistent back issues already? Too bad so many of the local folks don't have the option of hiring someone else to do the work, but HE DID.— philpa
