Skip to content
Phillies
Link copied to clipboard

Phillies Notes: No Tommy John surgery for Worley

A visit to orthopedic surgeon James Andrews confirmed the Phillies' diagnosis of a bone chip and inflammation in Vance Worley's right elbow.

Vance Worley said he will have to pitch with pain in his elbow for the rest of the season. (Ron Cortes/Staff file photo)
Vance Worley said he will have to pitch with pain in his elbow for the rest of the season. (Ron Cortes/Staff file photo)Read more

A visit to orthopedic surgeon James Andrews confirmed the Phillies' diagnosis of a bone chip and inflammation in Vance Worley's right elbow.

Andrews immediately ruled out any serious problem with Worley's ulnar collateral ligament - which means no Tommy John surgery is needed.

"Immediately after he grabbed my arm, he knew it wasn't Tommy John," said Worley, who visited the specialist in Pensacola, Fla. "Now I just have to go out and get it going."

Worley was not immediately sure of the plan for his return to the field. The righthander said he will have to pitch with pain in his elbow for the rest of the season, something that lefthander Cole Hamels did last year. Hamels had arthroscopic surgery after the season to remove bone chips from his elbow, although Worley said he does not know exactly how closely his condition mirrors the one Hamels experienced.

"It doesn't feel good, but I can do it," Worley said.

Worley is 3-2 with a 3.07 ERA in seven starts, continuing his success from 2011, when he went 11-3 with a 3.01 ERA in 21 starts and four relief appearances. Worley has bumped his average strikeouts from 8.1 to 9.2 per nine innings and has allowed seven home runs in 44 innings.

His last start came May 11 against San Diego, when he allowed three runs on six hits and two walks with nine strikeouts in six innings of a 7-3 win at Citizens Bank Park. Worley has been replaced in the rotation by righthander Kyle Kendrick, who allowed two runs in seven innings of a 2-1 loss to Washington on Monday night and two runs in six innings of a 9-2 win over the Chicago Cubs five days before that.

Rollins on leave

The Phillies placed Jimmy Rollins on the paternity leave list on Tuesday and called up catcher Erik Kratz to take his place on the active roster.

Under the major league collective bargaining agreement, players can take up to 72 hours of paternity leave. Manager Charlie Manuel said he expected to be without his shortstop for Wednesday's series finale against the Nationals, although assistant general manager Scott Proefrock said that the club did not know how much time Rollins would miss.

Rollins' wife, Jahari, gave birth to a girl on Sunday night.

Extra bases

Righthander David Herndon received a platelet-rich plasma injection in his right elbow on Tuesday. He will be reevaluated in two weeks. . . . Righthander Michael Stutes (shoulder) will be shut down for another 10 days to two weeks. Then he will be reevaluated to see whether he can begin a throwing program. . . . Righthander Justin De Fratus (elbow) has been cleared to begin a throwing program on Friday.