Phil Hughes officially has a stress fracture of his right 9th rib. This explains the side pain which was earlier attributed to his right obliques. During his time off, Hughes will also see an eye specialist regarding his night vision and glare problems.
The stress fracture puts all of my conspiracy theories to rest regarding Joe Girardi's use of the DL. Yes, Phil has a real, honest to goodness injury and my suspicious were incorrect.
Unfortunately for Phil, he's going to be out about 4 weeks, possibly more. He'll have to let everything rest completely before he picks up a baseball again, and then he'll likely need some rehab starts.
Hughes' career has been plagued by injury and this is yet another setback in a long list. He may still turn out to be a star and the longer he has remained healthy at one time, the better he has looked.
For the Yankees, this means Darrel Rasner will get a few starts and if he can't get them through some innings the impatient Yanks will likely look to make a trade. There's always the slumping Barry Zito, aging Smolz, the oft-injured Rich Harden, Tampa's Kazmir or Boston's Bartolo Colon. (Actually the odds of any of these guys ending up in NY are very small, but the Yanks will be looking for a trade if Rasner struggles.)
I feel bad for Phil, this injury is something the struggling pitcher doesn't need to deal with. Despite my past criticism, I sincerely wish him a speedy recovery and hope for an all-star performance when he comes back.
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