Monday, July 16, 2007

Here's Your Chance

The news wasn’t good for the Milwaukee Brewers on Monday, when they found out that their ace, Ben Sheets, had been placed on the 15 day disabled list with a sprained finger.

Sheets was injured Saturday against Colorado when in the 3rd inning, after releasing a pitch to Todd Helton, he felt it “pop”. The right hander left the game immediately to have the finger looked at by team physicians. Initially it was thought to be not terribly serious, but on Monday, the decision was made to rest him for the next two weeks.

Sheets has been having a fantastic season so far and has been the steady hand for the Brewers, leading the way for their pitching staff all year. He already has 10 wins for the club and has been a big part of the Brewers resurgence this season as they lead the NL Central. His absence will leave a huge hole in the Brewers rotation for these few weeks but the Brewers have a few promising young pitchers to fill it.

The first choice will be top prospect Yovani Gallardo who has started a few times this season already and pitched in relief as well. He has been successful in each role and will get another shot at starting now. He is the ace of the future for this club and has the stuff to dominate whomever he faces.

Another option will be Manny Parra, another rookie, who will compete for playing time and be used in a Carlos Villanueva-type role for spot duty and long relief. Parra has been destroying the minor leagues this season and has been lights out in triple-A Nashville with a few good outings, including a perfect game, only the 8th in PCL history. Needless to say a call up was inevitable and with Sheets hitting the disabled list, the future is now for these fine young pitchers.

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