Good news, everyone.
Pitching Ace Cole Hamels is expected to make his next start after skipping his last due to a case of mild inflammation in his pitching shoulder, according to MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki.
"Left-hander Cole Hamels is scheduled to throw a bullpen session on Friday in Washington. He remains on course to rejoin the rotation next week after missing a start because of inflammation in his left shoulder.'He's been progressing really well,' general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said. 'Cole likes to joke with me. He said, 'Oh, it's falling off.' We're not going to rush these guys back. There's no reason to rush him back.'"
It’s certainly what we want to hear, given that things have gone fairly smoothly this year as far as injuries to the starting pitching staff is concerned -- which is really the bread and butter of the 2011 Phillies.
Shoulder injuries are always, always, always a point of contention for pitchers, and when the pitcher just to happens to be one of the lynchpins of your team, you are going to hold your breath and hope for the best. For now, it appears to just be a case of better-safe-than-sorry-itus, but it won’t be until Hamels makes his next start, that the fans will collectively breathe a sigh of relief.
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If you ask me, I wouldn’t mind one bit if Hamels missed his next five starts, because, really, the team is cruising right along with a more than comfortable lead in the division, so there is no need to put him back into the rotation if he isn't completely healthy. Fortunately for the fans, the brass knows this as well.
