Phillies injury updates: Jerad Eickhoff, Victor Arano rehabbing
By John Town
Jerad Eickhoff and Victor Arano are both working their way back from injury as the two Phillies pitchers continue to rehab.
The Phillies are slowly but surely getting their pitchers off the disabled list. Mark Leiter was activated Wednesday, then sent down to Triple-A Lehigh Valley so Adam Morgan could then be activated Thursday. Meanwhile, Victor Arano and Jerad Eickhoff have begun rehabbing in the minor leagues.
While Eickhoff may still be a few weeks away, Matt Breen of Philly.com reported that Arano will likely be activated from the disabled list at some point this weekend. He did not say if Arano would return to the major-league bullpen or be sent back down to the minors.
Eickhoff made his first rehab start Tuesday after suffering a lat strain during spring training. It was not an amazing performance as he lasted just 3.1 innings for Double-A Reading. He allowed three runs on five hits and one walk while striking out three. The righty gave up a home run to end his start.
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Breen reported before Friday’s game that Eickhoff will make his second rehab appearance for Triple-A Lehigh Valley Sunday against the Syracuse Chiefs. He has 30 days to rehab, and considering how the first outing went, he may need much of this time.
The team has stressed before they are willing to take their time with Eickhoff, and considering how well the rotation has done in his absence, there is certainly no rush. He could potentially replace Zach Eflin if he falters over his next few starts, but he has only one run in his first two starts this season.
Arano has made two rehab outings so far, one in Reading Monday and another Thursday with Lehigh Valley.
In his first, he gave up two hits and a run while striking out two batters. Mike Drago of the Reading Eagle reported that Arano’s fastball was 94 miles per hour; his fastball averaged 93.7 in 10 outings this year. Drago also said that he used his slider to pick up the two strikeouts.
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When Arano pitched for Lehigh Valley, he allowed a hit and a walk but didn’t allow either runner to score. He picked up another strikeout during his inning of work.