Chad

Qualls

He picked up a strikeout while pitching around a walk and a hit in the frame. Qualls had been limited recently by a left knee injury, but it doesn’t appear to be an issue anymore.

It’s no big deal that he’ll be a couple days behind. Qualls didn’t pitch well away from Petco Park last season, but he’s had a good amount of success in his career and has a shot to be a solid middle relief option in Philly. The 33-year-old inked a one-year, $1.15 million contract late last month.

The reliever missed a little time with a right heel injury. He has now posted two shutout innings on the season.

It’s not clear when Qualls was injured, but Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said after Wednesday’s game that Qualls was unavailable even though he had only thrown three pitches in the previous five days, and then the righty was later seen wearing a brace on his knee. He’s expected to be one of three moves made by the Phils, as Laynce Nix (calf) is also likely headed to the DL, and Joe Savery has already been optioned.

Qualls is nursing a knee ailment that was expected to land him on the DL, but the Phillies evidently think he’ll be ready to pitch before long. The right-hander holds a 3.48 ERA and 1.65 WHIP over 12 appearances this season.

Qualls said Sunday that if felt like a “knife was going at” the back of his foot. But that sensation eventually faded, and he should be able to avoid the disabled list.

Qualls said it felt like a “knife was going at the back of my heel” when he was walking around. There is no swelling in his foot, but the bone is causing him pain. Consider him day-to-day for now.

It’s hard to tell whether Heyman is joking, but we’d imagine Qualls is drawing interest from multiple clubs. The 33-year-old right-hander posted a 3.51 ERA, 1.25 WHIP and 43/20 K/BB ratio over 74 1/3 innings this season, though he enjoyed most of his success within the comfy confines of PETCO Park. The Padres declined his $6 million option for 2012 in October.

Qualls had some scary splits away from Petco Park last year (5.05 ERA in 35 2/3 innings) and posted a 7.32 ERA across 59 innings with the Diamondbacks and Rays in 2010. The Phillies will hope for better out of the 6-foot-5 33-year-old right-hander, but they’re unlikely to get it.

Jon Heyman of SI.com reported previously that there were two “mystery teams” interested in Qualls, so perhaps the Mets are one of those teams. The 33-year-old right-hander posted a 3.51 ERA, 1.25 WHIP and 43/20 K/BB ratio over 74 1/3 innings this past season. The drop in strikeout rate is concerning, and Qualls was much better in Petco Park than on the road, but he wouldn’t be a bad addition on a reasonable deal.