Philadelphia Phillies Chase Utley to Undergo MRI

Philadelphia Phillies star second baseman Chase Utley will have an MRI done on his rib cage tomorrow, and we can only hope that the bill of health is clean for Utley following yesterday’s injury. CSN Philly reports the news of the MRI tomorrow and believes that the MRI will occur on the team’s off day tomorrow. Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. was quoted as saying that the MRI would occur either today or tomorrow, but it seems like Thursday is the most likely date.

Utley felt pain in his rib cage during cuts at batting practice yesterday, and the Phillies naturally scratched the 34-year-old veteran from the lineup yesterday. There is a strong chance of Utley ending up on the disabled list, so let’s hope that the injury was just minor. If Utley does land on the DL, then Freddy Galvis will start for the Phillies at second, as he started there yesterday in Utley’s stead.

Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said following yesterday’s game, “When he took a swing, he felt a little burn, a pain in his rib cage. Sometimes if you keep playing that can get more serious and you lose time. I’ve had those things. It’s hard to breathe, really hard to swing. We’ll see. Hopefully we don’t lose him for very long.”

Since rib injuries have a risk of lingering throughout the season, expect the chances of Chase Utley landing on the disabled list to be heightened. Tomorrow’s MRI will be crucial, and hopefully Utley can continue to play at a solid level. The star 2B has knocked in 25 runs this season, hit seven homers, and he has a .814 OPS overall with five steals to boot.