PHILLIES: Happ to DL, Romero Activated

A couple Phillies notes in a weekend where the Flyers and the Eagles took the sports spotlight in Philadelphia.

J.A Happ, as expected, was placed on the 15-day DL with some inflammation in his pitching elbow. While the concern as of this point is minimal, note that Happ has now had a stint on the DL because of some sort of problem in his pitching arm in each of the first three years in the big leagues. Happ’s absence will make it two starters now on the disabled list. The other, Joe Blanton, has been on the DL since the start of the season, but is making progress to the point where he may be back by the beginning of May (May 3rd would be his spot in the rotation). With now Happ and Blanton out of action, Kyle Kendrick’s role will remain as a starter, and the Phillies will use a combination of converted-starter Nelson Figueroa, last year’s ultimate spot starter Antonio Bastardo, and possibly Andrew Carpenter to fill out the rotation.

Just wondering, where is Pedro Martinez right now?

A welcoming addition to the Phillies pen'

As another player bites the dust when it comes to the injury bug, the Phillies actually got a player back in the big league mix this weekend, as J.C Romero was activated to the 25-man roster. Although he has been injury plagued (and allegedly steroid-plagued, although I’m not buying it) for the past two seasons, getting Romero back is still obviously a HUGE upgrade for the Phillies bullpen, as he has been the best left-handed reliever for the Phillies in recent memory. As it stands now, Romero will now join Antonio Bastardo as the second lefty in the bullpen, and will also get his fair share of opportunities as an eighth inning guy, joining Danys Baez and Jose Contreras in that role.

One other note in regards to the roster, Romero coming back right means nothing in regards to a player being sent down (because of the whole injury situation). However, to look into the future a bit, when Blanton or Happ end up coming back, or whoever comes back first, look for David Herndon to be the one who possibly gets the proverbial ax from the big league roster.