All Things Bubba

Andy Phillips' surgery went well. He had a small bone (the pisiform, on the outside of the wrist) removed. It was broken when he was hit by that pitch, and removing it will let him heal faster.

Weirdly, that seems to be a common treatment when an athlete breaks one of the small bones in the wrist. They just remove it. You'd think they'd miss it, but apparently, the surgeon can rearrange/reattach tendons, ligaments, and such so that the missing bone isn't missed.

Andy is still hoping to rejoin the team in October, if they make it that far, but it's probably a long shot. Even if he's physically recovered, he'll be awfully rusty by then. And there's no time (or teams) for a rehab assignment.

In other medical news, Roger Clemens has gotten a cortisone shot in his elbow. They don't know when (or if) he'll return to the rotation. Luiz Vizcaino has also been shut down for a few days, due to shoulder pain.

The Yankees took two of three from Seattle, which makes their chances of winning the wild card pretty good. Still, they only have two starting pitchers they can rely on right now. Even if they do make it to the post-season, you have to wonder how far they can go.

Haven't heard any news on Bubba recently. The Bats' season is over, so maybe he's gone home to Houston. For those who asked, no, I don't know if he'll be doing winterball this year. He might, since he missed so much time during the regular season. I'll be scanning the winterball rosters once they're posted.