Jesse Biddle has mild elbow tendinitis

The Phillies should add prospect Jesse Biddle to their 40-man roster later Thursday, and Biddle's recent elbow trouble was diagnosed as mild tendinitis.

It is one positive for Biddle, 23, whose 2014 season was forgettable.

"Everything looked good," said Joe Jordan, the team's director of player development. "Everything is fine. We think he has some tendinitis. Nothing at all. Everything is fine."

Biddle, the team's No. 1 pick in 2010 and a Germantown Friends graduate, was eligible for selection in December's Rule 5 draft if not added to the 40-man roster by Thursday's midnight deadline. The Phillies are expected to protect two other pitchers, Adam Morgan and Nefi Ogando.

Jordan declined to confirm the potential additions.

The Phillies wanted Biddle to recoup missed innings with some winter-ball action in Puerto Rico. That lasted two games before Biddle complained of elbow soreness. The lefthander returned to Philadelphia, underwent an MRI exam, which showed no structural damage. He is unlikely to return to Puerto Rico.

"The decision hasn't been made yet," Jordan said, "but it's doubtful."

Biddle lost time in 2014 due to a concussion suffered when an ice pellet struck his head during a hailstorm in May. That led to a longer shutdown, deemed a "mental break" by the Phillies. Then he suffered a quadriceps injury in August.

Morgan, who turns 25 in February, had surgery last January to close a gap in the front of his shoulder that was catching the top of the humerus bone. He missed the entire 2014 season, but appeared in September instructional league games before logging 16 1/3 innings in Arizona Fall League action. His results there were mixed, something the Phillies anticipated.

"More than anything, he just had to go compete and get back on the mound," Jordan said. "That was our goal. We really didn't have anything more than that. It was good. He had some good days, and he had a couple that weren't so good. That was expected. Everything was positive."

The 2011 third-round pick won favor during a strong showing at spring training in 2013. His health has failed him since. The Phillies are in desperate need of starting depth, which helped Morgan's case for protection.

Ogando, 25, came to the Phillies in a nondescript Aug. 2013 trade with Boston. The Phillies sent veteran infielder John McDonald to the Red Sox for the hard-throwing Ogando, who impressed scouts during his Arizona Fall League appearance. (He struck out 15 and walked four with a 3.07 ERA in 12 games.) His fastball reaches the high 90s and comes with the typical pitfall of erratic control. He had a 6.27 ERA at double-A Reading during the season.

Teams, when making their protection decisions, must weigh the probability that another franchise could carry a drafted player on its major-league roster for the entire season. That is the caveat with all Rule 5 selections.

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