Roy Halladay Injury: Updates on Phillies Pitcher’s Shoulder

Roy Halladay‘s tumultuous season just got a lot worse. The Phillies’ star pitcher left the Sunday, May 5 contest against the Miami Marlins due to discomfort in his shoulder. 

 

UPDATE: Thursday, May 9, at 9:29 p.m. ET by Eric Ball

—End of update—

 

UPDATE: Wednesday, May 8, at 2:00 p.m. ET by Tom Kinslow

Mike Axisa of CBSSports.com had more information on Halladay’s timetable for surgery and recovery and more of his thoughts on the entire process.

“[Doctors said the surgery] could turn the clock back two or three years for me,” said Halladay. “I feel like it’s a lot better than some things I anticipated … I don’t feel as lost as before. I feel like there are some answers there.”

Halladay, 35, will have the surgery “as soon as possible.” He cautioned that they will be smart about the entire process and take whatever pre- and post-surgery steps are necessary without rushing back to the field.

“I couldn’t understand why my location was so poor. So I really didn’t know what to think,” added Halladay, who pitched to a 8.65 ERA and 1.46 WHIP in seven starts this year. He allowed nine runs in 2 1/3 innings to the Marlins on Sunday.

—End of update—

Roy Halladay (shoulder) has been placed on the 15-day disabled list, according to MLB‘s Todd Zolecki.

—End of update—

 

 

After the veteran starting pitcher got chased in the third inning Sunday afternoon by the Miami Marlins, the Philadelphia Phillies revealed even more terrible news (via the Bucks County Courier Times‘ Kevin Cooney):

Halladay has been dreadful this season, and while this could very well explain some of the problems he has been having, it’s a potentially serious injury no one wishes for.

After beginning his 2013 campaign by allowing 12 earned runs through 7.1 innings in his first two starts, Halladay appeared to finally regain his Cy Young form.

The 15-year veteran won two of his next three starts, giving up just eight hits and four runs while striking out 16 in 21.0 innings. He lowered his ERA from 14.73 to 5.08, efficiently putting his catastrophic start in the rear view.

But as Cooney notes, this particular malady arose on April 24 just after he held the Pittsburgh Pirates to one run and one hit in six innings:

It would make sense, considering how horrendous he has been since that encouraging stretch.

On April 30, he lasted just 3.2 innings against the Cleveland Indians, getting blasted for eight runs and three homers. On Sunday, he gave up nine runs through 2.1 innings against the Giancarlo Stanton-less Miami Marlins.

For those wondering, CSN Philadelphia’s John Gonzalez notes this is a completely new injury for the veteran starter.

Add it all up—a very un-Halladay start to the season, an injury to the pitching shoulder for someone with over 2,700 innings pitched under his belt and a visit with famed surgeon Dr. Lewis Yocum—and the outlook doesn’t look good for Roy Halladay.

After Sunday’s loss, the Phillies sit at 14-18, five games behind the Atlanta Braves in the NL East. 

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Ryan Howard Injury: Phillies Star out Until at Least May

The Ryan Howard injury looked bad from the start. The overall reactions were bad from the start. Heck, even the early prognoses were bad.

Well, unfortunately for Philadelphia Phillies fans, all of those gut reactions have now been confirmed. 

Howard is out until at least May according to Howard Eskin’s Twitter account:

“Word I get from inside Phillies… Ryan Howard had MRI 2day and did reveal a torn Achilles tendon left leg. Likely out till next may or june”

Honestly, this is pretty much what everyone was expecting, but it hurts to actually hear it confirmed. Even though Howard struggled big time in the postseason and had arguably his worst season as a full-time starter, he’s a big part of that team.

The Phillies lineup is starting to look awfully thin, and the loss of Howard’s big bat is a big blow.

No matter how you feel about him.

And as long as we’re being realistic, eight months seems like an awfully kind estimate. The general consensus that I have heard regarding Achilles surgery is 6-to-12 months.

Ryan Howard is what you call a big boy and if he recovers in eight months, I will be very surprised. The Phils should probably prepare for life without Howard’s bat for the majority of the 2012 season.

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Ryan Howard Injury: 3 Possible Replacements for the Phillies in 2012

Ryan Howard‘s Achilles injury appears to be serious, and if he is forced to miss a big chunk of the 2012 season, the Philadelphia Phillies will have to find a way to replace him.

Here are three reasonable options not named Albert Pujols or Prince Fielder that could fill in for Howard.

 

John Mayberry Jr.

Whenever Howard would have a day off or play DH in an American League ballpark, it would be either Mayberry or Ross Gload who would replace him at first base.

Mayberry is not only eight years younger than Gload, he hit much better than him in 2011. Mayberry is the clear internal option here.

In 104 games, the 27-year-old hit 15 homers with a slugging percentage of .513. Oddly enough (or not so oddly, depending on who you are), that’s a higher slugging percentage than Ryan Howard’s .488 this year. It was a career low for Howard, but impressive for Mayberry nonetheless.

Not only did he out-slug Howard, but Mayberry had a much better strikeout rate and even walked at a decent rate. It wouldn’t be a stretch to say Mayberry was a better overall hitter than Howard this season.

 

David Ortiz

He hasn’t actually played first base full-time, since, well, since ever. But it’s first base and Ortiz has played there on occasion. It shouldn’t be that bad of a transition with a full round of spring training games.

For those wondering where this puts Howard when he’s back to full strength, it’s only a short-term solution. Ortiz is 35, and a one-year contract would be the only way to do this. Signing him to anything longer would be a mistake.

But in Ortiz the Phils would be getting a year-long replacement who just hit .309 and slugged .554 with 29 homers in 146 games. 

He’s a good fit for the middle of that lineup if the team thinks he can handle first well enough.

 

Michael Cuddyer

If the Phillies wanted to stay away from a short-term signing yet still find a way to fill Howard’s spot, this might be a way to do it. 

It doesn’t have to be Cuddyer, but signing a left fielder would be smart. Players often make the transition between left field and first base much easier than any other two positions. Cuddyer has even played a little first base in his career.

After Howard comes back, the Phillies wouldn’t have to worry about having two first basemen signed to long-term deals. Cuddyer would move back to the outfield. They would have a bit of a log-jam there, but that’s a more flexible situation.

Cuddyer hit .284 with 20 homers last season.

 

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Ryan Howard Injury: Phillies Need Star First Baseman to Be Contenders

If Philadelphia Phillies star first baseman Ryan Howard indeed has a torn Achilles tendon, it’s unlikely he’ll be back for the start of the 2012 MLB season.

And that’s going to be a huge loss for the Phillies.

When you have Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels, Roy Oswalt (if Philly picks up his option) and Vance Worley as your starting rotation, you’re pretty much guaranteed to be a contender, so perhaps the title is misleading.

The Phillies’ problems became evident in this year’s NLDS. They lack the offensive firepower to be a title contender. After Game 1, they scored a meager 10 runs in four games. Even with their star-studded pitching staff, that won’t get it done.

Next year looks even worse.

Table-setter Jimmy Rollins is likely gone and the Phillies likely won’t want to invest a ton of money in Jose Reyes as a potential replacement. 

Wilson Valdez, Michael Martinez or a cheaper free agent will likely replace Rollins. Downgrade. Maybe Freddy Galvis even makes an appearance, but it won’t be Jimmy Rollins.

Raul Ibanez is also likely on his way out. He’s getting old and has been declining, anyways. Domonic Brown could take over in left. 

And now if Ryan Howard is out for an extended period, this lineup is seriously thin. $20 million to someone in rehab makes it tough to go after a big-name free agent, too.

Hunter Pence and Shane Victorino are suddenly the heart of this lineup. Those are two talented hitters, but can either of them hit cleanup?

Pence is the only one with any experience there, and he has one home run in 30 games from the No. 4 spot. Not exactly the type of power you want to see from a playoff team.

Chase Utley might be another option, but he didn’t look the same this year and he’ll be 33 next year. 

The pitching will continue to carry this team, but at this point, the offense just isn’t good enough anymore.

And now, injury problems coupled with large contracts might just prevent them making a big splash in free agency.

 

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