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The good news out of the nation's capital stopped shortly after the Washington Nationals recorded the 27th out of their series-clinching win over the Philadelphia Phillies. In Nats' skipper Davey Johnson's post game press conference with reporters he ran down the laundry list of injuries that his 26-24 team is currently dealing with.
The first update actually came before today's game when the Nationals' 70-year-old manager talked to reporters about Jayson Werth's hamstring injury. "He said, 'You know, I was feeling great. I was running in the outfield. I was making turns at second base. I was running 100%. And then I go play and the first step out of the box after I hit a ball, it grabbed me.' He told me, he said, 'If I'd just taken it easy for three more days I'd have been by it.' Because he thought he was well. So now, every time you have something and you re-injure it, the doctor said it was two weeks, maybe he told me that four days ago or something, so he's probably got close to two weeks." Werth's been out of the lineup now for 24 days and he's not coming back any time soon.
The next update Johnson provided after the game, when he said that Ross Detwiler had a setback in his recovery from an oblique issue which caused him to miss his last start. The 27-year-old left-hander had cleared several hurdles, throwing a bullpen and working out in Nationals Park in recent days, but as Johnson said today, things went awry. "The bad news is Detwiler went out today and his side still is very tight. So we're going to DL him tonight and we're going to recall a left-hander [Xavier] Cedeno. And as far as the Tuesday starter, we'll just hold off on that right now."
"He went out and was doing some running and doing some playing catch," the Nats' manager explained, "and complained that whereas it's better, it's a lot better than it was, it's tight. And he and we didn't feel like it was the best thing and I talked to [Team Doctor] Wiemi [Douoguih] about it and he felt like another week, he'd probably be okay to make the next start from Tuesday which would be Sunday. But we're not going to rush it and exacerbate it at this point. So, we can backdate him. I think he's been on it for eleven days, he would fall in line for Sunday."
Nationals Claim LHP Xavier Cedeno Off Waivers From Houston Astros
Photo © Rick Yeatts/Getty Images
With the injuries to Jayson Werth, Wilson Ramos re-injuring his hamstring and now Detwiler, Johnson stated clearly that they won't be rushing the left-hander. "We're not taking any chance here and rushing [Detwiler] back," the 70-year-old skipper said.
As for Bryce Harper, who limped through today's game with continuing knee issues and was lifted early, hobbling off to a standing ovation, the Nationals' manager said he too might miss some time. "I mean, he's 20 years old, he's a great athlete and he heals pretty quick," Johnson said, "But he'll probably be down a few days. I don't know if there's fluid on the knee or what, but he was certainly gimpy that last at bat."
"When you keep sliding headfirst and that knee takes the full brunt really," Johnson said, which Harper did several times, "that's where it's been a problem."
As the former major leaguer put bluntly it at the start of the press conference, "He needs to slide and hit his ass instead of his knees."
• One Other Note: Our friend Chase Hughes at CSNWashington.com had the following note from today's post game chat with Harper:
Reporter said to Bryce Harper 'It's like #RG3 all over again.' Harper said 'no it's not.' #Nats #Redskins
— Chase Hughes (@chasehughesCSN) May 26, 2013
Anyone know what an RG3 is?