News
DiFelice's MRI reveals good news
Surgery doesn't appear likely for Brewers reliever
Mark DiFelice is 4-1 with a 3.66 ERA in 59 games for the Brewers this season. (AP)
By Adam McCalvy / MLB.com
09/14/09 8:15 PM ET
CHICAGO -- Brewers reliever Mark DiFelice appears to have dodged a major bullet on Monday, when he traveled back to Milwaukee for an MRI scan that revealed only wear and tear in his aching right shoulder. That qualified as good news for DiFelice, who underwent major surgery following the 2001 season to repair a SLAP tear to the labrum in his shoulder and needed 2 1/2 years to feel 100 percent healthy again. DiFelice worried that he might have suffered a similar injury on Sunday, when he felt pain in the joint and left the Brewers' game in Arizona. Instead, DiFelice will be shut down for at least four days before he's evaluated again. Brewers manager Ken Macha said he might have additional information about the plan for DiFelice on Tuesday, but surgery doesn't appear to be looming. "It doesn't look like it's anything too serious," DiFelice said. The timing of the injury is troubling, because the Brewers have just three weeks remaining in their season. DiFelice felt discomfort on his 10th and final pitch in the fourth inning on Sunday -- a pitch that completed a walk to D-backs pitcher Max Scherzer. After a mound visit from assistant athletic trainer Dan Wright, DiFelice was pulled from the game. Fellow reliever Chris Smith escaped the inning to avoid additional damage to DiFelice's steadily climbing ERA. He was one of the Brewers' most reliable bullpen arms, with a 1.64 ERA entering a July 26 outing against the Braves, but in 20 appearances since then, he has a 9.45 ERA. The shoulder, DiFelice said, hasn't been the issue. "After the surgery, I've had good days and bad days, but over the last four years, it's been absolutely perfect. [Sunday night], I just tweaked it," he said. "I think anybody can do that. The worst thing is when something happens at the end of the season. That's annoying."Adam McCalvy is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
