Hamels Sidelined, Victorino Activated

Well, it seems as if the Phillies have run into some more bad luck. Cole Hamels missed his start last night after having an MRI exam on his left elbow. Hearing that sentence alone is enough to make you shiver. Hamels told the trainer that he felt some soreness in his pitching elbow after throwing 6.2 innings of shutout ball in Washington last Thursday night. The MRI showed no structural damage to muscles, joints, or ligaments, and he was diagnosed with an elbow strain and hit the 15-day DL last night. The move is retroactive to August 17, so he can be eligible to return to the rotation September 1 at the earliest.

Taking Hamels’ start last night against the Dodgers was JD Durbin, who, despite giving Chris Coste goosebumps during his pre-game bullpen warm-ups, gave up 4 runs in 6 innings and earned the loss in the Dodger’s 15-3 romp of the Phillies, which was thankfully pushed aside by the national sports media so they could focus on the Rangers’ 30-3 killing of the Orioles at Camden Yards.

Fabio Castro will take the mound this afternoon for his first major league start. After being acquired as a Rule-5 pick from Texas last season, Castro spent the remainder of the year in the major leagues, being used primarily as a mop-up role reliever. The organization made the decision to turn him into a starter this past offseason, and he posted a 1-4 record with a 4.23 ERA in AAA Ottawa this year. Hold a mirror up to the screen to see his stats as a reliever (4-1, 3.24 ERA).

What a strange season it has been. Just five months ago, the Phillies had one too many starters going into Spring Training. The rotation was a formidable one – Myers, Hamels, Garcia, Moyer, Eaton, and Lieber. Of course, Lieber whined when he landed in the bullpen and only made two appearances before being promoted back to the starting rotation while opening-day starter Brett Myers was moved to the bullpen in a move that shocked Braves veteran John Smoltz. Today, their rotation is as follows: Kendrick, Durbin, Castro, Moyer, and Lohse. The only Phillies starting pitcher who opened the season with the team who has not hit the disabled list is 44-year old Jamie Moyer. Who would have thought?

In similar news, Padres ace and Cy Young candidate Chris Young will miss his next scheduled start Sunday in Philadelphia. He experienced lower back pain after his unorthodox 5 inning, 4 run outing against the Mets Tuesday night. This bodes well for the Phillies as long as their offense can wake up.

Shane Victorino was activated from the 15-day DL last night and took Hamels’ spot on the active roster. He went 0-4 and just missed gunning down a Dodger at the plate, but catcher Chris Coste couldn’t hang onto the ball after it skipped through the wet grass. Backup outfielder Chris Roberson was optioned back to AAA Ottawa and RHP Geoff Geary was brought back to the show.