After a rocky spring training, Yankees pitcher Phil Hughes was a big question mark for the starting rotation. Now, after pitching just three games, Hughes' role on the team is still unclear.
According to ESPN.com, the struggling righty will remain on the disabled list due to a nagging shoulder injury. Hughes has been experiencing velocity issues as of late and can only describe "just a lot of deadness" as what he feels when he throws. He was placed on the 15-day disabled list on April 15.
Hughes was recently forced to end a bullpen throwing session early after only 20 pitches, telling Yankees pitching coach Larry Rothschild that things just didn't feel right.
"It felt like I just had nothing there," Hughes told his coach.
Rothschild said that the team cannot assess Hughes' injury until more tests are done.
"The fact that there's no sharp pain and there's nothing that he can really draw a connection to is probably a good thing, but a bad thing is we're not progressing at all," Rothschild said. "I always have a level of concern but there's not much you can do until you know more or see where.”
So far this season, Hughes has pitched only 10 1/3 innings, giving up a whopping 16 earned runs.
