Nats Banged Up

Chad Tracy, above, took a fastball off his wrist late in last nights game against the Dodgers. (Photo: yimg.com)

As of yesterday, two Washington Nationals were placed on the 15-day DL and one more is now listed as day-to-day.

First off, the news broke yesterday afternoon that the Nationals were placing third baseman Ryan Zimmerman on the 15-day DL to try to heal his ailing shoulder. Zimmerman first injured it during the Nationals opening homestand when fielding multiple ground balls each game.

The Nationals called up Bryce Harper to take the place of Zimmerman. Harper will start in left field and Stephen Lombardozzi will play third.

Second, closer Brad Lidge was also placed on the 15-day DL with an "abdominal wall strain". As a result of that, the Nats called up right-hander Ryan Perry from AAA Syracuse to replace Lidge.

The third big blow to the Nationals major league roster came in the ninth inning of last nights game. Chad Tracy, a member of the famed "Goon Squad", stepped in to pinch hit with two outs in the ninth. He took a two strike fastball off his wrist and had to come out of the game due to the pain.

His x-rays came up negative, however, and Tracy even joked later with Adam Kilgore when he said "That's why you drink your milk." The teams best pinch hitter is listed as day-to-day with a wrist injury.

While the season is young, you'd hate to see the Nationals start off hot and then cool off due to injuries to key players. Last time Zimmerman had to sit for an extended period of time due to an injury, the Nationals collapsed in on themselves and fell way behind in the standings.

Hopefully these injuries will quickly pass. The Nationals are off to a great start and it would be terrible to see it spoiled due to some bad luck on the injury front.