Phillies' Taijuan Walker: Reaches seventh inning in rehab start

Walker (shoulder) struck out one and allowed four earned runs on seven hits and three walks over 6.1 innings in the third start of his rehab assignment Sunday with Triple-A Lehigh Valley.

Though he's struck out just two batters while walking six over his last two rehab appearances with Lehigh Valley, Walker appears ready to return from the 15-day injured list from a workload standpoint. He tossed 102 pitches while reaching the seventh inning in Sunday's outing, making him an option to rejoin the Philadelphia rotation as soon as this upcoming weekend in San Diego if the Phillies elect to bring him back. The Phillies are expected to maintain a five-man rotation upon Walker's return, with Spencer Turnbull likely to move to the bullpen in spite of his strong start to the season (1.23 ERA, 0.77 WHIP, 22:7 K:BB in 22 innings), according to MLB.com reports.