Carrol's Latest On Joba

Will Carrol's been working the phones since Joba Chamberlain went down with shoulder tendinitis in Texas and posted his latest analysis today at Baseball Prospectus. By all accounts, it seems as though Chamberlain is well on his way back - regardless of what Abraham's pessimism says over at Lohud.

The idea will be to work Joba back into the rotation the same way which was implemented the first go-round - in other words use him in relief until his arm strength allows him to start again. This is an especially smart move because the minor league season will soon be over and therefore take away the chance for him to rehab down there.

Carrol's thoughts:

Things looked good for Chamberlain when he got back up on the mound in the latest in a series of throwing sessions. The news has been more about shifting him back to the pen than it has about the success of his steady but slow return. There are a couple of factors that appear to be pushing him to relief work, none of them having anything to do with the injury. First is the impending end of the minor league season, making it tougher to send him down for a rehab start, and secondly the Yankees have chosen a more advanced approach to pitching management, something that has allowed them to transition Chamberlain from the pen to the rotation in the first place. Think of this as the same sort of transition, allowing him to build up stamina at the major league level while controlling his innings. The media and less-informed fans might panic, but in the end the Yankees have one starter who should be established enough for them to build around for 2009 and beyond.

As much as I enjoy a rotation built around Carl Pavano and Sidney Ponson and Darrell Rasner, for some reason Chamberlain and Phil Hughes would be a bit more exciting come September.

*** Humberto Sanchez has been promoted to Tampa and pitched one scoreless inning Monday night.

*** Ian Kennedy struck out another nine batters over six innings, allowing two runs on four hits. Over his last two starts IPK has punched out 18 batters over just 11 innings while walking just three. As you've read here [probably too many times], Kennedy needs to refine his curveball if he's going to be successful in the bigs. And that's what he's been doing during his latest foray into the minor leagues. Hence the big strikeout totals.

Joba Expects To Pitch This Month

I hope the Yankees are being as cautious as I expect them to be, but if Joba Chamberlain is indeed correct, it's great news that "The Hutt" could rejoin the Yankees rotation by late August - at which time he, alongside Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy could be celebrating a Generation Trey reunion.

Isn't it ironic how the Yankees will, in all likelihood, begin and end the season relying heavily on Hughes and IPK as rotation stalwarts.

Ed Price of the Star Ledger is reporting Chamberlain will likely miss a month, though he cites Yankees anonymous sources who call the injury "minor" and even says the injury was actually to his "biceps tendon" and not the rotator cuff.

From the ESPN article:

Joba Chamberlain plans to start a throwing program next week and expects to rejoin the New York Yankees' rotation this month.

"I'll be throwing in a week. I'll probably throw the beginning of next week," Chamberlain said Friday when he arrived at the Yankees' spring training complex. "Everything feels fine now."

[Chamberlain] never thought the problem was serious.

"No. Not at all," Chamberlain said. "It would have been different if I wasn't still throwing 99 [mph]. It was a different feeling that I never had, so I just wanted to make sure."

When asked if he would be ready to start again for the Yankees by Sept. 1, Chamberlain said "I'll throw way before that in a game."

Alrighty then. Yankees docs, let's try and do your due diligence on this one. I don't want the same brilliant minds who allowed the Mets' Ryan Church to play through concussion symptoms going near Mr. Chamberlain. I'd rather the Yankees play it safe with Chamberlain and thereby risk the 2008 playoffs, then take any chance on Chamberlain's shoulder and thereby risk the next decade.

If Joba is really suffering from the common malady of "shoulder tendinitis," then it does not make a difference if he rests for the next week or the next three months. As long as the inflammation subsides and his shoulder is properly restrengthened, there isn't any reason Joba can't return from this injury rather quickly.

Again, that is if the Yankees brass is offering the public an honest diagnosis and isn't playing the cloak and dagger games they have in the past.

Carrol's Initial Diagnosis On Joba Looks Positive

Will Carrol, the injury savant, offers his take on the Joba Chamberlain injury:

The early word is that his muscle tightened up due to a combination of the blistering heat (I sat in that heat the night before, and yeah, it's a huge factor) and fatigue. It's the latter that's most worrisome given Chamberlain's switch of roles. While he built up his arm strength, no one has any idea how the fatigue will be affected by the shape of his season. He's headed back to New York for tests, so we'll know more soon, but early reports and sources tell me that things look relatively positive, based both on the pain's location, and on his reaction. Expect the Yanks to be ultra-conservative, and for Chamberlain to miss a start at least.

Hat tip to the man, Alex of BronxBanter.

Damon DLed For First Time

Johnny Damon was placed on the disabled list for the first time in his major league career today and Justin Christian has been called up to fill the roster spot. This is the opportunity of a lifetime for Brett Garder - as the speedy outfielder now has free reign in leftfield [or center], and the chance to prove himself on the highest stage.

UPDATE:Horne Leaves Start With(out) Injury?

UPDATE 7:45 - Jennings has the news on Horne. Apparently he is suffering from sort of peculiar dead arm period:

Alan Horne is not injured, but he's not perfectly fine either. For whatever reason, he said his arm had no energy when he went to the mound this afternoon.

“It was almost like I couldn’t get the ball there," he said. "It didn’t matter what I tried to do. I’d try to add something to it and it seemed like the harder I tried to throw it, the less effective it would be. My breaking stuff was just as slow and loopy as I think I’ve ever thrown it, and I can’t tell you why. Physically I’m fine. They came out there and checked me out and I said, ‘Nothing hurts. I just feel dead. My arm especially. It’s like I have no life, no drive through anything.’ ”

Horne said he's hoping his arm is simply going through a slight dead period after the extensive rehab work he did in Tampa. He's planning to throw on the side tomorrow and prepare for his next regularly scheduled start. As for shaking his arm throughout the start, Horne said it had nothing to do with aches and pains.

Horne said that he did strength tests after the game and was told his shoulder was strong and healthy. You hear people talk about a "dead arm," and maybe that's what Horne's going through right now. It's weird to say the least.

This is neither horrible or encouraging news. Just strange. I would have to assume the Yankees doctors will do further testing to discover what the cause could be for such a condition.


After just two thirds of an inning, Alan Horne exited today's start for AAA Scranton with what appears to be another arm malady. Horne had thrown 30+ pitches during that time and walked three batters.

From Chad Jennings:

He was constantly shaking his right arm in between pitches.

After walking the first two batters, then getting back-to-back outs, Horne walked the bases loaded, leading pitching coach Rafael Chaves to go to the mound to check on him. Horne promptly went down in the count 3-1 before allowing a single to left field. After the base hit, the Yankees manager, pitching coach and trainer went to the mound and Horne walked away after a brief discussion.

The barrage of injuries to Yankees pitching is becoming obscene at this point. Wang, Hughes, Kennedy, Betances, Garcia, Whelan and now Horne - [not to mention minor injuries to Cox and Heredia]

Minors Injury Updates:Cox, Garcia, Betances

JB Cox began throwing again Monday after being shelved with what was labeled as shoulder soreness a week ago. This is excellent news for the Yankees and proves Mark Newman was correct in implying Cox's injury was nothing serious after some miscommunication had Brian Cashman stating Cox would be out "at least three weeks." It seems this tired shoulder and soreness is something expected after such a long layoff from elbow surgery. It does not appear the Yankees are very worried about this injury as Newman's comments were bordering on dismissive.

Apparently Dellin Betances pitched in a simulated game today and is making his way back from a similar shoulder malady to what sidelined Cox. Betances is rumored to have hit the high 90's mph with his fastball and had no discomfort. The flamethrowing righthander may return to the Charleston rotation in the very near future. It may just be the conspiracy theorist in me, but the Yankees may have simply decided to give Betances a breather in an attempt to limit his innings this year. The same type of blueprint was mapped out for Phil Hughes when he was at Charleston.

Chris Garcia has been MIA of late and an injury has been the only possible explanation. Though the Tampa Yankees are about as forthright as the Bush administration, rumor has it Garcia is suffering from the same slight soreness which bothered him while working his way through Extended Spring Training.

That's a lot of tired shoulders. It's important to remember how precautionary the Yankees have become with their minor leaguers, particularly when those players are high ceiling pitching prospects.

Garcia and Betances both have #1 starter type ceilings and will therefore be handled with as much care as professional athletes can be - regardless of what Jim Kaat thinks. Is anyone else completely perplexed by Kitty's inability to put together a coherant written column? I loved the guy in the broadcast booth, but somewhere between the microphone and the keyboard Kaat knocked his head on a toilet bowl and thought pitchers should once again throw 200 pitches per start like he did.

Wang Out With Lisfranc Injury

According to multiple sources, Chien Ming Wang has been diagnosed with a Lisfranc injury to his right foot:

Imaging studies revealed a mid-foot sprain of the Lisfranc ligament of the right foot and a partial tear of the peroneal longus tendon of the right foot.

This is the same injury which has kept Brian Bruney out and Wang will be stuck in a protective boot for six weeks before beginning rehabilitation. Looks like a late August return would be the ideal situation though Wang could be out until the postseason starts.

These recovery periods are purely speculative on my part, though the Sabathia rumors will certainly gain a life of its own. No doubt about it, this injury is a devastating blow to a team which had just recently begun playing good baseball.

Cox Injury A Mystery

JB Cox, who is knocking on the major league door as a potentially very valuable bullpen contributor, was recently placed on the seven-day DL. Then all hell broke loose.

Pete Abraham first reported via Brian Cashman that Cox had a case of shoulder tendinitis which would keep him out of action for "at least three weeks."

However, Tyler Kepner of the NY Times spoke to Mark Newman - the VP of baseball operations - that Cox's injury was a minor case and that he should be out only a few days. Somewhere in this jumble, Cash and Newman either crossed signals or there is a liar in our midst.

Here's what Kepner posted:

When the Yankees placed reliever J.B. Cox on the disabled list Wednesday without specifying a reason, it did not seem to be a good sign. But in talking to Mark Newman just now, it seems to be just a minor problem.

Cox, a top prospect at Class AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, has tendinitis in his right shoulder. Newman said it was only supposed to sideline Cox for four or five days, but because Class AAA allows for a seven-day disabled list, the Yankees put him there to give Scranton an extra reliever while he’s down.

“It’s a short-term deal,” Newman said by telephone from the Dominican Republic. “It’s not something to worry about.”

Cox seemed to have been very, very close to a big league promotion so this is a very interesting topic. More as it becomes available.

Hughes Out Until August?Sore Shoulder For Cox

According to MLB.com, Phil Hughes may not return to the big leagues until early August:

Right-hander Phil Hughes is expected to be examined this week and his timetable for a big league return has been pushed back to early August.

Tough break for Hughes. The other Yankees beat reporters have yet to collaborate Bryan Hoch's report, so this may simply be a tentative date to shoot for. Until Yankees brass or other writers support the report I'll assume Hughes will be ready sometime in July.

Update on JB Cox: he was placed on the seven-day DL with shoulder soreness according to Chad Jennings. There's no word on how long he will be out or how severe the injury may be. Jennings did confirm that the injury was "not related to his elbow or his Tommy John surgery."

TROUBLE: Cox Placed On DL

From the SWB Blog comes news that JB Cox, AAA reliever and projected bullpen contributor for New York after the all star break has been placed on the seven day disabled list. [the seven day DL is the shortest allowable time period in the minors with the 15 day being the shortest in the majors].

No word yet on what the injury might be, as it could be something as mild as a sore calf. It could, however, be as serious as an arm strain. No place for speculation yet, but will definitely keep an eye on this one as Cox is expected by many to ultimately pitch in the late innings to alleviate the absence left by Joba Chamberlain.

Hughes Is "Pain Free"Will Throw Soon

Phil Hughes reports on his website that he hasn't been having any pain in his ribcage for a week and should begin throwing again soon:

"On another note, I have been pain free for about a week and hope to be throwing again soon. I also received my new Oakley prescription glasses for when I’m back on the mound. Should be pretty intimidating."

The phrase goes you can never have too much pitching. Hughes is a nice insurance plan to have on tap should Darrell Rasner or Mike Mussina suddenly come back to earth. It's amazing how quickly a 21 year-old can transform from the future of the franchise into an injury-prone disappointment in the minds of some fans.

No one is delusional enough to laud Hughes for his horrific start to the '08 season, but if this is what passes as patience for the Yankees fanbase, I'd hate to see them at the DMV. As someone who's seen him in person at Trenton and in the Bronx, few times have I been more confident about the future of a young player.

We could throw out the "struggling young pitcher" caveat which includes countless starting pitchers like Tom Glavine [7-17 in his first full season] and Greg Maddux [6-14 with 5.61 ERA in his], but we already know 21 year-old pitchers take time to adjust to the big league level of difficulty.

This is not to suggest Hughes will become a 300 game winner or a first ballot HOFer, but it allows for a bit of sanity within an insane conversation. Just remember this kid's arm possesses a 91-95 mph plus fastball, 75 mph plus hammer curve, 80 mph slidepiece and a developing changeup. This is not Nook LaLoosh we're talking about here - i.e. fastball, fastball and more fastball.

To suggest we've seen the peak of Hughes' abilities is just as knee jerk a reaction as it would have been had the Braves and Cubs organizations not allowed 21 year-olds Glavine, Maddux and 22 year-old John Smoltz develop. A World Series, a playoff streak and seven Cy Youngs later, it appears to have worked out pretty well for them.

Knowing how competitive, determined and proud a guy Hughes is, I will be very interested to see how he responds to his second consecutive injury impacted season.

Phil Hughes will get another scan on his injured rib later this week and if the test reveals a healed bone he will begin throwing again.

Hughes Injury "Update"

Missed it last week, but maybe some of you guys did as well:

According to a NY Daily News report on May 29th, Phil Hughes underwent a bone scan recently which revealed a "hot spot" in his injured rib. The lack of progress meant he would have to hold off on throwing until the results of his next bone scan [this week] are revealed. Once Hughes is actually given the OK to again pick up a baseball, it will likely take about a month before he can rejoin the big club.

Horne, Sanchez Take Another Step

Alan Horne continues to make his way back from a bicep strain by tossing nearly six innings and reportedly could join the Scranton Wilkes-Barre rotation as soon as next week.

Since his injury on April 10th, Horne has gradually passed every test thrown at him and now finds himself with a high enough pitchcount to again knock on the big league door:

Horne threw 5.2 innings on 77 pitches today in extended spring training and said he expects to rejoin the Triple-A rotation this week.

According to his father, Horne had good command and bite on his curveball and slider. He allowed three or four hits, struck out 7 and only walked the last hitter he faced when [again, according to his father] Horne was losing his leg strength in the 97 degree heat.

Meanwhile, another power prospect - Humberto Sanchez - has been working his way back from Tommy John surgery and will soon be pitching to live batters. His armstrength has been built up to about 40-45 pitches.

Though the Yankees have yet to say anything official regarding Sanchez's role, it's widely believed he will break into the Yankees farm system as a late inning reliever.

I, myself and many other prospect watchers believe this is the right gameplan for an often injury ridden pitcher who possesses closer stuff. For me, Sanchez's ETA remains September, though that is simply an estimate on a very fickle athlete and injury recovery period.

Prior Done For Season,Sidearming Smoltz?

Mark Prior signed a $1 million deal [excluding incentives] with the San Diego Padres last offseason in the hopes of resurrecting a career which had sputtered its way out of Wrigleyville.

Unfortunately for Prior, the painful phrase "season ending surgery" is again the mantra in 2008 as the righthander will have his shoulder operated on to repair the anterior capsule. Padres Manager Bud Black, a former big league pitcher himself told reporters "I can’t imagine how frustrated [Prior] is."

In other pitching injury news, John Smoltz is attempting to work his way back from an arm ailment which had hindered his performance by making some drastic changes to his delivery. The future HOFer will institute a three-quarters armslot with the goal of pitching toward contact, getting groundball outs, limiting strikeouts and thereby avoiding high stress pitchcounts. Apparently the transition is still very much experimental as Smoltz already threw a fastball six feet over a hitter's head last week during a minor league rehab outing.

Kennedy, Betances Placed On DL

Ian Kennedy, as expected, will be placed on the disabled list with a strain of the lat muscle located near the shoulder. This is the same injury which pushed him out of the playoff rotation picture last season. Kennedy has been sent back to New York for an MRI and the medical staff will move forward from there.

Another top young arm in the Yankees organization - Dellin Betances - has officially been placed on the DL by the Charleston Riverdogs. Though Betances was shut down last year with elbow inflammation, it has not yet been determined what type of injury the hulking 6'9'' right hander suffered.

Horne Ready For Next Step

From the SWB Yanks Blog comes news on Alan Horne and his progression coming back from an arm injury. Apparently Horne is done pitching in Extended Spring Training games and will throw in the higher affiliates this weekend.

[Horne] made another extended spring training start today, pitching 3.2 innings with seven strikeouts and no walks... Horne said he once again felt great.

He also said he doesn't expect to make another extended start, but he's not sure where his next assignment will be. All he's been told is that he will pitch somewhere on Sunday. Could be Tampa, Trenton or Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

There are a whole lot of people inside the organization pulling for Horne's return. There's also a bunch outside the organization in the form of reporters, fans, family, etc. I'm one of them.

Kennedy Leaves With Lat Strain

Looks like the transitioning of Joba Chamberlain to the starting rotation may have come at exactly the right time.

During another subpar performance from Ian Kennedy, the righthander was peculiarly lifted from the game after only 51 pitches and three innings of work. As you may imagine, IPK left due to an apparent arm injury and will be reevaluated tomorrow.

From NJ.com:

Yankees starter Ian Kennedy, who came out after three innings and 51 pitches, has been diagnosed with a "slight" strain of his right latissimus dorsi.

Because of an off day Thursday, he Yankees can get by with four starters unitl June 3. Could Joba Chamberlain be ready for the rotation by then?

I would bet my bottom dollar the Yankees are far too strict with Joba's transition strategy to start him on June 3rd - and only able to toss 80 pitches. Guys like Dan[imal] McCutchen may be available to make a start by then. If Alan Horne was a couple weeks further into his recovery time he would certainly be top candidate for a call up as well.

Olney: Santana's Wear & Tear

From Buster Olney's blog today comes the discussion of Johan Santana's longterm health and effectiveness throughout his contract with the Mets:

Heard this from a couple of evaluators: Johan Santana's velocity is down 3-4 miles per hour from a couple of years ago. He is short-arming the ball more than he has in the past -- and this is after some red flags appeared in the physical examination he underwent before signing with the Mets. Sources say his shoulder showed some wear and tear, which is not unusual for a pitcher of Santana's age. This is not to say Santana is not an effective pitcher now, but all of this information makes you wonder how effective he will remain during the course of his multi-year deal.

Obviously, these rumors could be discarded should Santana continue to dominate hitters during the life of his new deal. However, should Santana's shoulder crumble in the next couple of seasons it will be interesting to hear what Hank Steinbrenner [and similar-sounding Yankee fans] feel about Brian Cashman's decision to pass on the Johan sweepstakes.

To be fair, when I saw Santana pitch at Yankee Stadium last weekend the stadium gun had the lefty consistently pitching 91-93 mph. Santana frequently hit 94 and topped out at 96 a few times with his fastball. This is all reliant on the Yankee Stadium radar gun which is often said to be inaccurate at times. Though Keith Law agrees with that idea, I usually find the stadium gun to be very accurate.

Jeter Day-To-Day

After taking a 93 mph Daniel Cabrera fastball to the left hand, Derek Jeter is officially day to day. [How much you want to bet Mike Mussina paid Cabrera to plunk Jeter after the Yankees shortstop flubbed a routine grounder which extended a nightmare first inning and ending the frame trailing 7-0 instead of what would have been just a 1-0 deficit.]

But of course Jeter says he is fine:

"It'll be fine," said Jeter, whose hand was in a protective wrap after the game. "It's not a big deal. I should be all right by (today). He hit me pretty good. (Thankfully) it's not broken."

Yankees reliever LaTroy Hawkins incited a bench-clearing incident in the top of the sixth when he threw at Orioles outfielder Luke Scott's head in apparent retaliation. Home plate umpire Chuck Meriwether promptly ejected Hawkins. No punches were thrown after the benches and bullpens emptied.

Scott was incensed that Hawkins aimed at his head.

"Of course it was (intentional)," Scott said. "I understand that you have to protect your players, but there's a certain way to go about it and that was not it. You never throw at anyone's head intentionally. You can injure someone. ... You can end a career."

Hawkins said that he was simply "throwing the pitch inside and it got away from me."

Alex Rodriguez returned from the DL, so it was only fair that the Yankees Captain become injured. So is the way of the Yankees universe these days.