Phillies: Vince Velasquez exits with apparent injury

Velasquez looked to slip on the mound, and left in the second inning during the Phillies Marlins game

Just when Phillies fans thought nothing else could go wrong, Vincent Velasquez leaves Tuesday game in Miami.

Philadelphia’s fireball right-hander called out the trainer in the bottom of the second inning and left without throwing another pitch.

Mark Leiter Jr. entered the game in relief of Velasquez and allowed a run on a Cesar Hernandez error.

Velasquez had a perfect first inning throwing only 10 pitches, but allowed a solo home run in the second, followed by a long double.

He leaves throwing just 19 pitches, but 15 were for strikes thanks to his fastball. His velocity did dip a tick prior to him exciting the game.

Prior to leaving Velasquez looked to have either slipped on the mound or overextended his right plant foot during a pitch. He was in noticeable pain, grabbing his right hip region while covering a play.

Velasquez does have a long injury history, but the majority is related to his arm/elbow. The Phillies had him on an innings limit last year, and shut him down in the final weeks of the season for precautionary reasons.

If Velasquez needs to head to the disabled list, the Phillies have multiple prospects in the minor leagues. Nick Pivetta was recently returned to Lehigh Valley after the return of Aaron Nola from a back injury.

Zach Eflin was also sent back to the IronPigs after being rocked by the Reds at home, but will likely get more work in Lehigh Valley.

Either Pivetta or Ben Lively was expected to replace Eflin on the major league roster when his turn in the rotation came around.

Next: Phillies Considering Demoting Franco

We’ll have more information on Velasquez once it becomes available.