New York Yankees right-hander Phil Hughes was diagnosed with a bulging disk in his back last week, an injury that manager Joe Girardi says
could cause the pitcher to begin the season on the disabled list, according to
Bryan Hoch of MLB.com.
Girardi said "it's possible" Phil Hughes won't be ready to start the season.
— Bryan Hoch (@BryanHoch) February 27, 2013
The Yankees are trying to give Hughes time to recover from
his back injury, an issue he also experienced during the playoffs last season.
However, as a projected starter, Hughes will require appearances and innings in
order to build his arm strength up to the point where he can break camp in the
team’s rotation.
If Hughes requires additional recovery time and is forced to
begin the season on the DL, they could look in-house and have David Phelps fill
in for the right-hander. They could also reach outside the organization for a
temporary fix, perhaps someone like Roy Oswalt, Dallas Braden or Carlos
Zambrano. Kyle Lohse doesn’t figure to a be a fit unless Hughes’ injury proves
significant.
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