Chipper Jones tweaked his ailing right knee Monday night, and an MRI Tuesday revealed a bone bruise, but he was back in the lineup Tuesday night against the Phillies.
X-rays taken Monday night were negative, Jones said, and the MRI revealed no structural damage to the knee which he had surgically repaired in July. There is little treatment now other than rest, and rest is not an option for a team fighting for a wild-card spot. So Jones was back in there for the 19th time in the Braves’ past 21 games.
“Can’t quit now,” said Jones, who aggravated his knee running the bases Monday, but still went 2-for-4 with a homer. “... I’ve been preaching all along, ‘People are tired. People are hurt. So what? Let’s go. Strap it up.’”
Jones said if it were April, he wouldn’t be playing. As it is, there’s not much he can do other than ice it and take it easier in batting practice.
“Bubba [trainer Jeff Porter] said it’d start to feel better around Thanksgiving,” Jones said.
Jones said if the Braves make the playoffs, he might consider a pain injection, but he’s had injections of both cortisone and sodium bicarbonate already to little avail.
Jones also said the pain he’s enduring has no bearing on his decision to return next season. He has every intention to play out the final guaranteed season of his three-year, $42 million contract extension.
“I’m still intent on coming back,” Jones said. “I thoroughly expect to have some problems with it again next year, but we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”
Hudson, Beachy set to go
While the Braves were hoping to save Tim Hudson to pitch in Game 1 of the Division Series, he was prepared to take the mound Wednesday against the Phillies with a shot at the playoffs on the line.
Hudson was the man on the mound for the Braves the final day of the 2010 season, when he beat the Phillies to help the Braves clinch the wild card. He limited them to four runs in seven innings in an 8-7 win.
“My last two starts I considered playoff-type games. Essentially they were that important,” said Hudson, who won both of them, against the Mets and Nationals. “[Wednesday] is no different.”
Entering Tuesday, the Braves had won only three of their previous 10 games, and Hudson had won two of them. He had to leave his previous start, against the Nationals, with cramps (three runs in 5 2/3 innings) and spent much of that night in the hospital receiving five bags of IV fluids, but that shouldn’t be a factor this time. Hudson said it was his fault for not hydrating properly for the humidity in Washington.
Manager Fredi Gonzalez said if the Braves are forced into a one-game playoff for the wild card Thursday in St. Louis, Brandon Beachy would pitch. That game is set to start at 8:07 p.m. ET if necessary.
Moylan eyes return
Peter Moylan got the best-case scenario when Dr. James Andrews said his shoulder surgery would only require six months’ recovery. Moylan hopes that means he could return to action in spring training.
He will undergo arthroscopic surgery Monday performed by Braves orthopedist Dr. Xavier Duralde, who gave him his initial diagnosis of tears in his rotator cuff and labrum.
An MRI in January first revealed a rotator cuff tear, but Moylan was able to manage it with cortisone shots. That changed six outings into his return from back surgery.
“As soon as you hear shoulder, the first thing I thought was every other guy who’s ever had to have a shoulder completely repaired has been out for 12 to 18 months,” Moylan said. “I was fearing the worst.”
As it is, Moylan said he could be playing catch in as soon as three months.
Whether his return is with the Braves is yet to be seen. He’s entering his final year of arbitration eligibility. The Braves likely will non-tender him, as he stands to get a raise from his one-year, $2 million contract, but they could opt to try to sign him for less.
About the Author
