Left-handed starter Cliff Lee has been placed on the 15-day disabled list by the Phillies due to an injured left oblique muscle, the club announced Saturday evening. Kyle Kendrick will take Lee's spot in the rotation while he's down and reliever Joe Savery has been recalled from the minors.
Here's an oddity: Lee was scheduled to face Daniel Hudson and the Diamondbacks Monday. Now both are on the DL.
There's no word yet concerning a timetable for Lee's return, but oblique injuries usually see players miss at least a month. So this is a huge blow for the defending NL East champs. Not only are they missing Ryan Howard and Chase Utley, but they face very stiff competition in one of the best divisions in baseball.
Lee, 33, is 0-1 with a 1.96 ERA and 0.70 WHIP with 18 strikeouts in 23 innings this season. He's coming off a stellar performance where he dueled Matt Cain in San Francisco. Lee threw 10 scoreless innings but the Giants won 1-0 in 11 innings.
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