Carlos Zambrano was scratched from his scheduled start on Sunday due to shoulder fatigue. With the Cubs far and away the favorites to win the NL Central, they could afford to give him a couple of extra days rest. He is scheduled to start on Tuesday, but don’t expect him to last long, as he has lasted longer than 5 innings in only two of his last five starts. I am surprised the Cubs didn’t decide to let him rest longer, to ensure that he is fresh for the playoffs.
Joba Chamberlain is set to return Thursday out of the bullpen. Though there have been some grumblings about Joba returning to the rotation later in the month, it would be wise for the Yankees to simply keep him there and set their sights on having him return to the starting rotation in 2009.
Kevin Gregg is being shut down due to inflammation in his left knee, from what sounds likely to be tendonitis. This is a situation where Gregg was trying to play through the pain, but it worsened instead. Said Gregg, "I think the amount of workload I put in during the last couple of weeks is barking back at me a little bit. I think it was a bad decision to continue to throw on it, and it kind of cost the team some games." Matt Lindstrom will be his replacement, though Arthur Rhodes and Joe Nelson could also see the occasional save opportunity. Now that rosters have expanded, there is no point of putting him on the DL.
Wandy Rodriguez is out with an oblique strain, after sustaining it during this weekend’s start. Oblique injuries are difficult to return from, and with such little time remaining in the season, he may have pitched his last game in 2008. The K/9 ratio was Wandy’s primary strong point, so owners will want to replace him with someone with respectable K/9 rates such as Ricky Nolasco, Jorge De La Rosa, Zack Greinke, David Purcey, or Randy Wolf.
Ben Sheets left today’s start against the Mets in the fifth inning with what is being called tightness in his left groin. After the game, Sheets said he was not in pain. Said Sheets, "I think it’s going to be fine. I don’t think it’s as bad as last year. I really think I’m going to be all right. I’m just going to pay a little more attention to it and hopefully move forward." With the Brewers in a very tight playoff race, they can ill afford to lose Sheets at this point in the season. Last year, he missed the last two weeks of the season with a right groin injury, and they ultimately missed the playoffs. I would not be surprised if he makes his next scheduled start, but I would be equally not surprised if he missed one start. Stay tuned.
Chris Carpenter is planning to return to the Cardinals tomorrow, but it will be out of the bullpen. This will allow him to keep his pitch volume in check, while working on building some shoulder endurance. During the offseason, he will continue to work on his overall conditioning and shoulder strengthening so that he can return to the top of the Cardinals rotation for 2009.
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