Phillies Injuries Reach Critical Mass

With the announcement today that both Chase Utley and Placido Polanco have been placed on the DL, panic has ensued in Philadelphia.  Much has been said about the Phils being “bitten by the injury bug” this year. 
I will take that a step further and say that the Phils have been stabbed mercilessly and repeatedly by the “injury knife of death.”  Bugs can be ignored and swatted away.  But the “injury knife of death” seems a tad more menacing, with just the right amount of violence and desperation mixed in.

I saw a TV show today about a battered wife who stabbed her husband 193 times and then buried him the backyard in a hole he had dug himself for a home improvement project.  It seems both painful and unnecessary.  Sound familiar?  It should, because that is the general tone and feel of the Phillies season thus far.  Just to recap, here are the major injuries by player with the dates and positions:

The entire infield, except Ryan Howard, has spent time on the DL, including both catchers and 2 starting pitchers.  Sprinkle in 3 relief pitchers plus the closer and we have here the makings of a disappointing season.

Utley hurt his thumb getting thrown out trying to stretch a single into a double yesterday against the Reds.  After the MRI, he has been diagnosed with a sprained ulnar collateral ligament of the thumb.  Basically, his thumb is going to fall off.  Ok, not so much, but it is really, really bad news. 

Right now they are saying it is a “sprain,” but if the ligament is torn, this usually requires surgery and the recovery time is about 4 months.  Are you counting on your fingers right now?  No need…that brings us to the end of October which means the season would be officially over for Utley.  Utley says he will see several more doctors for additional opinions so we will know more after that.  Hopefully, it is just a sprain but either way, this is not good.

As for Polanco, he has bone spurs in his elbow.  He can try to play through the pain and keep getting cortisone shots, but the shots alone will put him out for 2-3 days at a time.  Off-season surgery is probably already being planned.

So with 7 players still on the DL, Happ not doing well in his rehab, Durbin possibly being lost for the season and the uncertainty surrounding Utley and Polanco, can this team succeed this year?  Get out the defibrillation paddles; if the team flat lines, they are going to need to be resuscitated…fast.  And preferably before the “injury knife of death” strikes again.  Ugh.