Spencer Turnbull‘s return to Comerica Park ended after he pitched three innings for the Philadelphia Phillies on Wednesday afternoon. Turnbull, 31, left his start against the Detroit Tigers with soreness in his right shoulder. On Thursday, Turnbull was placed on the 15-day injured list with a right shoulder strain. Rob Thomson spoke to Tim Kelly of Phillies Nation about how long the right-hander will be out.
“It’s probably gonna be six weeks, could be eight weeks. With his injury history, we’re gonna be careful with him and make sure we do this thing right.”
With Taijuan Walker out with a finger injury, the Phillies will have to tap into their depth to fill out the rotation. Thomson has already suggested that Michael Mercado will take Turnbull’s spot in the rotation for the time being. Yunior Marte is coming back up from Triple-A Lehigh Valley to fill the spot on the active roster.
Spencer Turnbull Lands on 15-day IL with Shoulder Injury
The shoulder problem arose on Turnbull’s next-to-last pitch of the game before he got Matt Vierling on an infield popup to end the third inning.
“I just felt a little grab in the back of my tricep, shoulder area,” said Turnbull. “After that curveball, it got a little tight on me. Hopefully, it’s nothing serious, but I wanted to tell them when I felt it. I didn’t want to do anything to make it worse.”
Turnbull has done well with the Phillies. He posted a 1.67 ERA and 36 strikeouts across 32 1/3 innings in six April starts as a replacement for Walker. Turnbull threw three scoreless innings on June 21 against Arizona in his last outing, reaching 49 pitches. Walker’s absence from the IL gave Turnbull a second chance at the rotation. Turnbull has posted a 2.65 ERA split between the rotation and bullpen this year.
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