By: JP Ross
It is an unfortunate day for many fantasy baseball owners, as well as all Philadelphia Phillies fans. Roy Halladay is officially out 6 to 8 weeks with a strain of the right latissimus dorsi (he has a strained shoulder).
The Phillies are a team that are no stranger to injury, they have not had Ryan Howard or Chase Utley at all this season, and Cliff Lee has already spent time on the DL. With such little offensive presence the Phillies rely heavily on their talented rotation, but without Halladay that rotation certainly takes a hit. Most teams would dream of a rotation that had Cliff Lee and Cole Hamels in it, but the loss of Halladay is still a big one. Halladay is arguably the best pitcher in the game and has been for some time.
So what does this unfortunate injury mean for the last place Phillies, well it hurts. Philadelphia had already been struggling this season and has gotten off to a slower start than they had hoped for. In the ultra-competitive NL East the Phillies currently sit in last with a record of 26 wins and 25 losses. This wouldn’t be a terrible record in most other divisions, but they are a game over .500 and still sit 4 games back of the young Washington Nationals. If the Phillies are out of this by mid summer, you very well could see them shopping Hamels. Many teams could use a lefty to anchor their rotation and he would be a hot commodity.
The good news is that Halladay will not require surgery just some time to heal. Stay tuned for more info on his rehab and a more exact date of when he is expected to be back in the majors.
Cold Beer Here 