Phillies say little after Halladay's visit to doctor

SAN FRANCISCO - If the Phillies had information Tuesday regarding Roy Halladay's health, they were not sharing it with the world.

A cloud of uncertainty remained over their rotation and the star righthander's future. Halladay saw a doctor Tuesday, this much is sure. But the Phillies did not release any further updates.

It was unknown exactly when during the day Halladay saw Neal ElAttrache, the Dodgers' team physician, in Los Angeles, and what tests were performed. An MRI examination was expected. Halladay said he was concerned by pain in his right shoulder, pain different from the muscle strain that sidelined him in 2012.

Inside the Phillies clubhouse, Halladay's teammates could only prepare for the worst and hope for something better.

"Even if he's gone forever," Cliff Lee said, "there's nothing we can do."

Before Tuesday's game, pitching coach Rich Dubee was handed a phone by a team official while standing in the dugout. After completing the call, Dubee disappeared. General manager Ruben Amaro Jr. was not visible in the clubhouse or dugout before the game.

The lone decision-maker who spoke on the record was manager Charlie Manuel. "I don't know yet," he said when asked about Halladay. Manuel added that he anticipated a resolution soon.

The Phillies did not say when or if Halladay would join the team for the remainder of this West Coast road trip.

A lack of information Tuesday bred speculation. No one knows if Halladay has thrown his final pitch or will simply miss a few weeks of action.

"You don't want it to happen," Lee said. "Definitely not him. We all know that. That's something that happens. He's pitched a long time, fired a lot of bullets. I hope it's not major and it's something minor and he's back in a couple weeks and jumps back on board. But until then, we've just got to keep on grinding."

The team moved forward by announcing Halladay's replacement, Tyler Cloyd. He will pitch Friday. Cloyd, who started six games at the end of last season, was chosen over Adam Morgan.

Halladay's 8.65 ERA is the second highest in baseball among qualified pitchers. The results were more than satisfactory for a stretch of three starts in April in which he pitched to a 1.71 ERA. Halladay said he threw while injured during his last two starts, both of which were disastrous.

No one, including Manuel, wants to see it end for Halladay this way.

"It depends on what [the doctors] tell him," Manuel said. "I know how much he wants to pitch and loves to pitch."