Perennial injury risk Jaret Wright had his right shoulder examined by a team doctor Wednesday and no structural damage was found. That’s the good news. Wright left his start Tuesday in the sixth inning with shoulder tightness, pain he said was similar to that which knocked him out for over half the 2005 season. He’s still scheduled to start Sunday for the O’s, but the warning shot has been fired early. He was actually looking solid on Tuesday after getting molested in his first start, so the timing couldn’t be worse. Wright has endured two surgeries on this shoulder, and should a fifth trip to the DL since 2000 be necessary, Baltimore will have a rotation hole to fill. The obvious standby choice is prospect Hayden Penn, but after he was scratched from his Tuesday start at Triple-A because of a sore right forearm, that plan is out. Rob Bell, who really opened some eyes this spring with his performance (many thought he deserved to break camp with the team) isn’t an option either. An infected middle finger on his pitching hand has forced the Orioles to send Bell to their minor league camp. Should Baltimore need an emergency starter for Wright on Sunday, the best bets now are either Jeremy Guthrie , who started one game for the Tribe last year, or Garrett Olson, one of the team’s best pitching prospects who is coming off a successful Triple-A debut. Needless to say, this isn’t the kind of start that Baltimore (3-6, last in the AL East) was hoping for this season. Of course, the schedule makers didn’t do any favours to Baltimore, having it open the season with three straight series against 2006 playoff teams. With the Royals and Rays on tap, the O’s should be able to right the ship over the next week.
By RotoRob
Tags: Mikko Koivu
This entry was posted
on Thursday, April 12th, 2007 at 4:23 pm and is filed under BASEBALL, Fantasy Notes, RotoRob.
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