As the Phillies welcomed their newest face to the clubhouse in Corey Dickerson, they may have lost another key player for the season.
Left-handed reliever Adam Morgan was placed on the 10-day IL with a flexor strain, the second time this season Morgan has been shelved by the injury.
An MRI Friday revealed the condition had worsened.
"Some days were OK, some days were worse. The bad days were just getting a lot worse than what they were (before)," Morgan said. "We had been putting everything on it and just trying to manage it the best we could but it just kept getting worse.
"I'm not gonna change my mechanics for it. At this point, I'm only doing the team a disservice without my best stuff. I knew I wasn't gonna be 100 percent but I feel like I wasn't competing the best I could."
Morgan knew upon his return in late June that he was not going to be pitching pain-free. But the pain became too much, and it resulted in less velocity and less effectiveness from a pitcher who was one of the Phillies' best the first two months of the season. When Morgan hit the IL the first time, it was the end of May and he had a 1.96 ERA. In 16 appearances since returning, he had a 7.15 ERA.
Is he done for the season?
MLB
"I'll be back as soon as I can but I can't promise anything," Morgan said, which sounds ominous. The first time Morgan was sidelined this season, he missed a month. This is worse, so it's likely this will take longer than a month. Only eight weeks of the regular season remain, and the amount of time Morgan spends not throwing will be the amount of time he needs to build back up.
The good news is that Morgan will not require surgery or a PRP injection. The bad news is the Phillies are without a solid lefty for their stretch run.
David Robertson and Tommy Hunter are out for the season. Pat Neshek is a ways away and may not pitch again in 2019. Manager Gabe Kapler is still holding out hope Seranthony Dominguez can return from an elbow injury that was initially thought to require Tommy John surgery.
In all, 20 different Phillies have spent time this season on the injured list, with five of those players requiring two stints. Nine of those 20 were relievers. No team in the majors has suffered more bullpen injuries than the 2019 Phillies.
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