After playing through bone chips in his elbow for most of the season Placido Polanco was absent for Roy Halladay’s no-hitter by sitting out Game 1 of the NLDS yesterday with a back injury, but the veteran third baseman is expected to rejoin the Phillies’ lineup for Game 2 tomorrow. As for how he suffered the injury, Polanco apparently tweaked his back while getting out of his car Monday, although he was unsure exactly how it happened:
They asked me how and I really couldn’t say anything. That’s probably the only drastic move I made, getting out of the car. It was raining, and I got out of the car. And that’s it. But I didn’t slip or anything.
Not exactly encouraging words for Phillies fans considering Polanco is 35 years old and signed for the next two seasons. General manager Ruben Amaro Jr. called the injury “kind of freaky.”