Chase Utley Uncharacteristically Brief in Response to Knee-Related Inquiries

After firing off a 3-for-20 salvo while rehabbing with the Clearwater Threshers, Chase Utley was asked again how his knee was doing.

Weirdly enough, instead of the graphic, colorful, immersive yarns he’s given bored reporters with regarding his personal health in recent years, Chase was short, quiet, and to the point; almost as if he was sick of being pestered with questions years ago and now is just numb and bitter to the entire process.

But, even if they were muttered as he gave everyone the finger, Chase did in fact give responses to the inquiries.  And they were the best we’ve heard so far.

"“I don’t know.  I really don’t know.”–Chase Utley"

Out of context, that probably sounds like someone asked Chase how to properly steam mussels, or which of Jupiter’s moons is the most gaseous, or anything that no normal person knows offhand.  But in fact, he is replying to the question “What comes next?”

A simple question, certainly; or at least, direct in nature.  But still, Chase cannot answer it.  He must wait for Ruben’s Crow to appear through the fog in the window of his keep, an assignment tied to its leg.

Have the weeks of rehabbing left him somewhat lost in a barren baseball limbo?  Does he know where he is?  Does he have hope for the future?

"“Yes.”–Chase Utley"

Sorry, Chase was not answering that question I asked.  He was saying that yes; his knee feels okay.  Which is great news!

If it is, in fact, news.  But nobody knows what’s real anymore.  Remember back in spring training, when Chase said he was fine.  In fact, he was so relaxed about the 2012 season that he’s taken most of it off.

The finality of this process will escape us for some time.  Chase doesn’t know what’s going on; and if he did, he wouldn’t care to tell us.  Ruben doesn’t know what’s going on; his reports are based on what Chase lets him know, and even then, become tangled and ambiguous upon leaving Ruben’s mouth.