Phillies: Jerad Eickhoff injured in rehab start with Lehigh Valley
Another injury has hit one of the Phillies more promising starters
A lat injury late in spring training put Phillies righty Jerad Eickhoff on the disabled list, and he’s not coming back any time soon.
Phillies manager Gabe Kapler told reporters Monday that Eickhoff felt a twinge in his right index and middle fingers during a rehab start with Lehigh Valley. Eickhoff will be shut down pending a medical evaluation with team doctors to determine the cause of his issue.
A similar injury put Eickhoff on the disabled list last season and kept him off the field for the final month of the season. The official listing of Eickhoff’s injury last year was a nerve irritation in his pitching hand.
Eickhoff appeared to be a potential number two starter in the rotation behind Nola with a dominant curveball that rivaled Clayton Kershaw in terms of effectiveness.
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Philadelphia’s starting rotation has survived without Eickhoff this year and despite the back injury of Ben Lively. Signing Jake Arrieta late in spring training certainly took pressure off a young group of arms, but the emergence of Nick Pivetta has spelled the staff.
Pivetta, Vince Velasquez, and Zach Eflin have held their own in the back of the rotation while Arrieta and Aaron Nola prove to be ace as the number one and two arms. Philadelphia’s starting pitching has allowed 3.89 runs per game, the eighth best in baseball.
Even behind the starting five in Philadelphia, arms await in the minor leagues with Lively ready to fill a role and Mark Leiter Jr. with starting experience.
Beyond the two experienced arms in Lehigh Valley prospect Enyel De Los Santos has impressed in seven starts with a 1.41 ERA.
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Pivetta is scheduled to pitch Monday night against Atlanta to start the home series with Velasquez and Arrieta scheduled to follow.