Ryan Howard hit two home runs in the Phillies' 9-4 win over the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field, but injuries defined the night.

Catcher Carlos Ruiz left in the sixth inning with a sprained left wrist, a potentially serious problem for an organization with no major-league-ready catchers in the farm system. If Ruiz misses time, 33-year-old Paul Hoover likely would back up 37-year-old Paul Bako.

Manager Charlie Manuel said that Ruiz injured his wrist when the catcher tagged Matt Diaz on a play at the plate to end the second inning. X-rays showed no fracture, and the team will know more today, though Manuel said, "I don't think he's going to be out a long time."

Happ insisted after the game that he felt no pain at any point, despite his obvious grimace in the third. "There was a lot of debate," he said, adding that he expected to make his next start. ". . . I guess they wanted to err on the side of caution."

"I thought we would take him out of the game for precautionary reasons," Manuel said. "We need lefties."

With one out in the third, Nate McLouth hit a ground ball to the right side of the infield. While running to cover first, Happ slowed and grimaced, drawing Manuel, pitching coach Rich Dubee, and athletic trainer Scott Sheridan onto the field. They consulted with Happ, who clearly argued to remain in the game; the pitcher won his point after throwing several warm-up tosses.

But Happ allowed a home run to Martin Prado in the next at-bat before getting two outs, and Kyle Kendrick began the fourth inning. Happ initially strained the muscle taking a batting-practice swing in Houston on Sept. 5, and he ended the top of the third last night by lining out to second base. It was not immediately clear whether he had aggravated the injury with that swing.

Happ had hoped to resume two competitions last night after missing a pair of starts with the injury: the race to join a potential postseason rotation, and to be named National League rookie of the year (his chief threat to that award, Tommy Hanson, pitches tomorrow for Atlanta).

The Phils have 16 more games to make important decisions about the playoff pitching staff, and Happ's shaky health appears to bolster Pedro Martinez's candidacy. With Cole Hamels, Cliff Lee and Joe Blanton likely to start the first three games of a series, either Happ or Pedro Martinez would start the fourth, with the other relegated to a bullpen role.

The Phils signed Martinez during the all-star break essentially as insurance in case they could not acquire a pitcher such as Lee before the July 31 trade deadline. But with a 5-0 record, a 2.87 earned-run average, and an excellent 1.09 walks and hits per inning-pitched ratio, Martinez has forced his way into consideration. Eight shutout innings on Sunday may have at least temporarily given Martinez an edge, which he will try to increase with today's start.

If healthy, Happ may fit the bullpen better than Martinez for a few reasons. Last October, he performed impressively in relief against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League Championship Series. Martinez has allowed five of his 12 runs this season in the first inning, and eight runs in innings 1-3.

Contact staff writer Andy Martino at 215-854-4874 or amartino@phillynews.com.