Four injury red flags

There is too much to discuss in the wake of Wednesday's 10-6 loss to the Mets that dropped the Phillies four games below .500 for the first time in 1,827 days. In the immediate, the Phillies have myriad injury concerns.

Start with Laynce Nix, who appears headed to the disabled list. Nix was limited by a sore left calf for two days. He pinch-hit in the sixth and delivered an RBI single. He could barely make it to first base.

"He said he could hit," Charlie Manuel said, "so I let him hit."

Nix said he didn't tell the Phillies he was 100 percent, but that he could hit.

"I didn't know it was going to get worse," he said.

He will go for an MRI during Thursday's off day. He said the disabled list was a "possibility, yes."

>>> Carlos Ruiz did not take batting practice Wednesday and pinch-ran for Nix. Ruiz was wearing a large black brace on his left arm/wrist. He obviously was not available to hit.

Information on his ailment is foggy. But Ruiz did miss two games with a left wrist sprain in late April. It certainly bears watching.

>>> Ty Wigginton iced his sore left side after the Wednesday loss. He said he was available to hit but played coy when asked for details of his injury. He said doctors saw him Wednesday. When asked if they had diagnosed soreness, he said, "You could call it that." Then he smiled.

So there could be more to Wigginton's injury, too.

>>> And Chad Qualls might be the most nebulous of them all. Qualls has thrown three pitches in the last five days but was unavailable Wednesday. That's why Kyle Kendrick was hung out to dry. With Antonio Bastardo having thrown 38 pitches in the last two days, Jose Contreras was the eighth-inning man. It never reached him.

So why was Qualls down?

"We were trying, kinda to stay away from him," Manuel said.

Was there a reason why?

"No," Manuel said. "We were just staying away from him. He's healthy."

Qualls did wear a small brace on his left knee after the game. He was unavailable for comment. Keep an eye on his status, too.

Needless to say, the day off Thursday comes at a fortuitous time.

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