Phillies righty Mark Leiter has been diagnosed with a mild flexor strain, according to Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com (via Twitter). He will be shut down for two to three weeks before attempting to ramp back up.
That’s certainly disappointing news, though far from the worst-case scenario. Leiter underwent an MRI after reporting forearm tightness. With fellow starter Jerad Eickhoff also suffering an injury late in camp, the Phillies organization was surely holding its collective breath.
Leiter says he anticipates missing about a month of the season. Of course, the specific timeline will depend not only on how he responds to the injury, but also how long it takes him to build back up to full strength and what kind of precautions the club takes.
The pair of injuries leaves the Phillies’ rotation a bit under-staffed, though there are certainly options on hand. Roster Resource now predicts that Nick Pivetta and Ben Lively will occupy the last two spots in the starting staff to begin the season. Drew Hutchison, Jake Thompson, and Zach Eflin are the other starters with substantial MLB experience who could conceivably round out the unit or function as depth.
Of course, the loss of depth could also add some impetus to pursuit of an outside acquisition. It’s not really clear at this point, though, whether that’s a realistic consideration. The Phils have already spent some money on the pitching staff in the form of Jake Arrieta and a few relievers, while also adding Carlos Santana to their lineup.
If the club does turn to the open market, the top name is unquestionably Alex Cobb, though he would likely require a significant outlay. There are a few veteran hurlers still looking for work, too, including such notable names as John Lackey, Jake Peavy, Matt Garza, Scott Feldman, Ubaldo Jimenez, Jeff Locke, and — if he’s still at all interested in playing — R.A. Dickey. It’s also possible the Phillies could keep an eye on the waiver wire and look at released non-roster invitees as camps draw to a close.
That’s certainly relatively good news. At least we have a pretty considerable amount of pitching depth in the upper minor leagues.
As a fellow Phillies fan it is good news.
I, however, kind of view the rest of the guys behind Nola and Arrieta as a grab bag:
Reach in and pull one out because on any given day you don’t know what you’re going to get.
IMHO the guy with the most upside might be Eflin since he got his legs fixed, though we still have to see if those new legs allow him to take a leap forward.
I agree with you for the most part
I like Lively and I’m encouraged by Eshleman, but as I’ve stated here before, Velazquez needs to be moved to the bullpen and I think Pivetta would as well.
Totally agree. I kind of wish the Phillies could bundle 3 or 4 of these guys together and trade them all for one good pitcher.
and they will
No they won’t, the above names simply wouldn’t land a good pitcher.
You’re right. No one’s giving up a good starting pitcher for 3-4 AAAA pitchers
Seeing the name Mark Leiter gave me major nostalgia; I can’t even lie about that. I hope he gets well soon.
Another one going to be down with TJS. Is this going to be number 7 so far into the year?