Chipper Jones hopes another round of cortisone injections will help him continue to stave off arthroscopic surgery on his right knee. Jones said he learned Friday that he had a low enough dosage in his previous injections May 15 that he could go ahead with another dose now.
Jones plans to get a shot after Sunday’s game against the Orioles so that he’ll have 24 hours before the Braves play Monday night against the Rockies. He hopes he won’t have to miss a start that way.
Cortisone shots typically require two to three days to take effect, but Jones missed only one game after his May 15 injections and was ready to return by May 17 against the Astros.
Jones is playing with a torn meniscus in his right knee that has began to bother him again this past week. He likely would have undergone surgery, which would require two to three weeks to recover, if the Braves hadn’t lost both Jason Heyward and Martin Prado for stretches to the disabled list.
Heyward is back, and Prado could return as soon as the Phillies series before the All-Star break, but Jones doesn’t want to sit when the Braves are gearing up for that series or coming out of the All-Star break. This way he thinks he might buy another long stretch without it being an issue. He made it five or six weeks the last time.
“If they tell me they can keep giving me a shot every five or six weeks, and I won’t be hurting my life after baseball, it’s something to think about,” Jones said.
Jurrjens vs. Halladay
Jair Jurrjens used a one-hit shutout Friday night against the Orioles to make his case to start the All-Star game for the National League. Phillies ace Roy Halladay followed that by pitching his fifth complete game of the season Saturday afternoon in a win over the Blue Jays to make a case of his own.
Both are 11-3 and tied for the NL lead in wins. They are No. 1 and 3 in the NL in ERA — Jurrjens has a 1.89 ERA and Halladay is at 2.44. They would appear to be the top two choices to start for Giants manager Bruce Bochy.
While All-Star rosters will be announced at noon Sunday on TBS, Bochy won’t have to make his decision on a starter until later in the week. Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez appreciates that it’s a hard one and wonders if Halladay won’t get the edge as the more veteran pitcher who has two Cy Young awards.
“I think you almost have to go with Doc or [Cliff] Lee — seniority,” Gonzalez said. “Doc is a Cy Young award winner in both leagues. Cliff won the Cy Young in the American League.”
Lee, who is 9-5 with a 2.66 ERA, went 5-0 with an 0.21 ERA with three complete games in June.
Both Lee and Halladay have started All-Star games for the American League — Halladay in 2009 and Lee in 2008 — and have combined to make nine All-Star teams. Jurrjens is poised to be named for the first time.
“I know it’s an honor and privilege to start the All-Star game, but just to be named to that is big,” Gonzalez said.
Braves recall Gearrin
The Braves optioned reliever Cristhian Martinez to Triple-A Gwinnett on Saturday and recalled Cory Gearrin, a pitcher Gonzalez figures he can use more often that Martinez, who pitched in long relief.
With the Braves’ five-man rotation fully intact again with the return to health of Brandon Beachy and Tommy Hanson, Martinez had pitched once in the previous 13 games. He pitched only three times in the past three weeks.
“[Gearrin] has been pitching pretty good in Triple-A,” Gonzalez said. “Maybe we pitch him more often, instead of using a long guy.”
Gearrin hasn’t allowed an earned run in his previous four outings in Gwinnett, over six innings. He was 1-1 with a 3.60 ERA in 15 innings in his previous two stints in the majors this season.
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