Phillies rightfielder Aaron Altherr is on schedule in his rehab from wrist surgery that has kept him out since the first week of March. GM Matt Klentak said Friday that Altherr is in Clearwater and has started taking dry swings with light bats. The next step would be soft toss, and from there the Phillies will continue to evaluate his health.
The initial four-to-six month timetable placed on Altherr's recovery remains the same, Klentak said Friday. That could put Altherr in line to return to the Phillies by August, potentially giving him two months to impress a Phillies front office that has not seen much of him.
"He's sort of hit all the checkpoints and is doing well in his rehab," Klentak said. "We anticipate he’ll be back roughly when we said he would."
Altherr exceeded expectations in 161 plate appearances with the Phillies last season, hitting .241/.338/.489 with 11 doubles, four triples, five home runs and 22 RBIs in 39 games. That display of power led the Phillies to pencil him in as a No. 5 or 6 hitter this season, and his loss has been felt as they've struggled to find any offense from their outfield corners.
Eickhoff's ankle fine
Jerad Eickhoff was fine on Friday, a day after being hit on the left ankle with a line drive. That ended his night, but Eickhoff was going to be pulled after 6 2/3 innings anyway.
Eickhoff woke up Friday and was able to walk normally and then do his usual day-after-start running routine.
