Injury Update: Cliff Lee doesn’t need surgery

Jun 17, 2014; Atlanta, GA, USA; Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher Cliff Lee shown in the dugout during the game against the Atlanta Braves during the eighth inning at Turner Field. The Phillies defeated the Braves 5-2. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

The Phillies expected veteran pitcher Cliff Lee to be done for the rest of the 2014 season, but they were unsure if he would miss time in 2015.

The Phillies’ official site confirms Lee will not need surgery on his left elbow, but he will have to sit out for the rest of the season.

Lee missed two months with a left pronator strain earlier in the season and suffered the same injury in just his third start off the disabled list.  He was facing Denard Span of the Washington Nationals in the third inning of a game on July 31st when he clearly felt something in his left arm after pitch number 31.  Lee left the game immediately after and said he knew something was wrong.

Lee has 13 years of big-league service and nearly 2200 innings pitched.  Although he’ll turn 36 later this month, the 2008 AL Cy Young Award winner has been consistent the past few seasons, ranking in the top 10 for many pitching categories.  That of course is when he is healthy, this season the south paw was 4-5 with a 3.65 ERA.

His replacement during his first DL-stint this season, 25-year-old David Buchanan, will also replace him in the rotation now.  Buchanan went 5-5 during Lee’s first two months out this season and he added his sixth win on Wednesday night by going 6.1 innings while giving up three earned runs.