Phillies shut down Jonathan Pettibone for another three to six weeks

The Phillies have shut down rookie starter Jonathan Pettibone for another three to six weeks, reports CSN Philly’s John Finger. The right-hander hasn’t started since the end of July due to a strained right shoulder. A recent MRI revealed inflammation in his right rotator cuff, but thankfully there is no structural damage. He will receive a second opinion from orthopedist Dr. Neal ElAttrache.

Amaro on Pettibone’s setback:

“We’re going to be cautious with Jonathan. We don’t want to mess around with him too much,” Amaro said. “He has inflammation of his rotator cuff and some of the normal changes on his labrum that normally happen at this stage of his career, so we’re going to shut him down.”

Pettibone was a bright spot in an otherwise grim season for the Phillies. He initially joined the rotation when John Lannan succumbed to an injury in April, but stuck around out of necessity. He posted a 4.04 ERA in 100.1 innings spread out over 18 starts.

In other injured Phillies starter news, Roy Halladay will make a third rehab start with Double-A Reading on Sunday. He has looked less-than-stellar in his previous two starts, but the Phillies are hoping he can shake that off this weekend and return to the rotation in time to make another four or five starts to give them an idea what he has left in the tank.

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