Philadelphia Phillies’ Chase Utley making improvement in rehab as Major League season draws near
The Philadelphia Phillies may have the best rotation in Major League Baseball, but their batsmen will have a lot to live up to when the new 2011 season kicks off in April. With Chase Utley out of the hitting card for the coming weeks, there is no telling
how powerful the club is without its premier player on the plate. Nevertheless, it was considered good news when it was revealed that Utley made slow improvement in his rehabilitation program.
The Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. had a few words to share to the press, as he headed over to Bright House Field to watch his team face off against the Tampa Bay Rays in a Grapefruit League game, he spoke keenly on the matter and said, "These
are kind of baby steps," Amaro Jr. cautioned. "I can't sit here and say this is a giant step forward or he's going to be ready for Opening Day or anything like that. We're comfortable with the path. It may take a while. We'll see if he continues to show progression.
Hopefully he will."
Ruben told the press that the club was satisfied with the treatments prescribed to and observed by Utley. The player is prematurely out of action due to patellar tendinitis, bone inflammation and chondromalacia in his right knee.
The player has been exercising routinely and Ruben was able to talk about his progress. He stated that Utley has not been taking ground balls yet and that he is working with head athletic trainer, Scott Sheridan, as there is no major improvement yet.
The player has not been taking medication for the ailment and is not visiting the knee specialists at the moment. Even though he is not scheduled to go there, Ruben has spoken about the issue cautiously.
"I don't know if it's good news or not good news," Amaro said of his update. "It's just news. It's not a lot of news. The main thrust of this discussion is that we've made some consultations, we've done some research and right now, we're going to stay with
the rehab stuff we're doing right now and hopefully it will keep moving forward."
If Utley returns to the team, the club may have a better chance in the playoffs in the offseason period.
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