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The Phillies have placed veteran lefty Cliff Lee on the 15-day DL after an MRI revealed an elbow strain. As Ryan Lawrence of the Philadelphia Daily News writes, the worst-case scenario isn't in play right now:
Lee isn’t headed for surgery; he’s in line for a few weeks of rest.
Lee was diagnosed with a Grade 1/2 left elbow strain.
“It's never good news whenever you lose one of your No. 1 pitchers, but it's pretty mild,” [GM Ruben] Amaro said. “But it's a strain and we want to be careful with him.”
Since Lee will be shut down from throwing for at least the next week, he isn’t likely to return when the DL stint expires. The Phillies hope he’ll return within the next month.
The 35-year-old Lee this season has pitched to a 3.18 ERA and a sparkling 6.78 K/BB ratio after 10 starts. The former AL Cy Young winner long ago established himself as one of the top command pitchers in the game today. He's presently seven wins shy of number 150 for his career, and he's logged at least 200 innings in each of the past six seasons.
Lee is presently in the fourth year of a five-year, $120-million contract. The deal also includes a vesting option for 2016.
