thurdl sports

NIH: Year End Injury Wrapup Part Two

Wow. After what happened last time I made one of these posts, I was hesitant to get to work on this one. However, I think this is a much more stable list of players, especially as it includes our presumed ace for the 2007 season.

Michah Bowie: No, I didn't mean him, I just do these alphabetically. Bowie appeared in 15 games out of the bullpen for the Nationals this season, managing a 1.37 ERA and more strikeouts than walks in 19.2 innings of work. He was one of several pitching callups during the season, and not the only callup to get injured. He hit the 15-Day due to muscle strain in his throwing shoulder in mid-August and was supposed to be ready for a return on or about September 18th. However, he never made that return, and finished the season on the DL. He had some good games, and would be worth a second look, but there is currently no indication if he is in the Nationals plans for 2007.

Shawn Hill: Hill has been sitting on the 15-Day DL for most of the season, having been placed there originally on July 1, with the team citing elbow soreness. Before that, he'd managed a 1-3 record over six starts for the Nats. He was never downgraded to the 60-Day list, and never upgrades back to active status during the season. He's a young pitcher, still under team control, and cheap to keep around, leading many to assume he'll be in Spring Training to compete for a starting job with the 2007 squad.

John Patterson: John Patterson is injury prone. There's just no better way of putting it. His 2006 was limited to just eight starts, including his last outing, where he lasted just one inning before having to be pulled because his injured elbow started acting back up again. After his second trip to the DL this season, it was announced he would be receiving surgery to relieve a pinched nerve that was causing most of his problems. Recently, he was spotted at Alfonso Soriano's 40-40 induction bash in New York, and was interviewed the next day by the MASN crew. He indicated at the time that he was getting back to pitching curve balls, and has had no major set backs. He'll hopefully be good to go in Spring Training, and we can only hope he has an injury free 2007. If he's to be the ace of the 2007 staff, then the team is hoping for the pitcher who started 31 games in 2005, and not 8 last season.

posted by thurdl @ 10:09 AM