Erik Kratz Surgery Probably Not Going to be Good for Phillies

Erik Kratz tore his medial meniscus in his left knee in that last game he played in; that one when he walked off the field, clearly injured.

Aug 20, 2012; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Phillies catcher Erik Kratz (31) in the on deck circle during the seventh inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Citizens Bank Park. The Phillies defeated the Reds 12-5. Mandatory Credit: Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports

Instead of it somehow being nothing, it was something.  And now Erik Kratz is gone.

For how long?  No one knows.  Until the sew him back up, the 32-year-old will remain as ignorant as we are about his return time.  I suppose he is the Phillies’ back up catcher now… there’s no flux there.  There just appears to be with all the shifting names and digging through the farm system that is required to fill it due to injury.

The point is, you assume the job will be waiting for him when he comes back.  Quintero and Lerud aren’t job-takers, and any rumors of finally seeing one of these catching prospects have been whispered if even said out loud.  And it’s not like anybody wants the job very badly.

Chooch will be back in 2-3 weeks they say; he’ll be killing time in Lehigh with Chase as they both hurry back to this disaster.  I don’t know how long this surgery takes to recover from, but I’m wagering that Chooch is back before Kratz is working at 100% again.