Phillies' Ruiz receives cortisone shot

MILWAUKEE - Catcher Carlos Ruiz received a cortisone shot in Philadelphia yesterday and planned to rejoin the Phillies late last night, general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said.

The catcher, suffering from inflammation and a sprain in his left wrist, will miss about five days before testing the injury in a game - standard after receiving a cortisone shot - the team said.

A vital player for the Phillies because of their lack of catching depth, Ruiz aggravated the injury twice in the last week. He initially suffered the sprain during a home series against Washington Sept. 15-17 when he was hit by a foul tip.

A home plate collision in Atlanta last Friday forced Ruiz out of the lineup until Tuesday, when he left in eighth inning with soreness. The Phils hope that the injection and rest will be sufficient treatment to keep Ruiz healthy for the rest of the season.

Pedro Martinez moved more easily through the clubhouse yesterday, without the grimace he has sported since straining his neck last Friday. Martinez received his second chiropractic adjustment of the week yesterday and threw off flat ground. He will not throw a bullpen session this week, atypical for a pitcher between starts - but not, apparently, for Martinez.

"A lot of times I don't throw a bullpen," he said. "I only need it if there is a pitch that I need to work on."

Of his neck, Martinez said, "It's still sore, but it feels better." He is scheduled to pitch against Milwaukee's Braden Looper tomorrow.

The Phillies' brass will face difficult decisions about the postseason roster regarding Brett Myers, J.C. Romero and Chan Ho Park. None of the three relievers will be able to pitch in more than a few regular-season games, and none is likely to be at full strength for the playoffs.

Myers, nursing a strained upper back muscle, is scheduled to throw a bullpen session Tuesday. If that goes well, he would likely need several days before he could pitch in a game. The regular season ends Oct. 4.

Chad Durbin missed 21 days this season with the same injury as Myers and said yesterday that the strain affected his arm slot and spoiled the movement on his pitches. "Sink and cut and break - everything was dull," he said.

If Myers returns next Friday, he will have missed 17 days, close to the span that was sufficient to heal Durbin.

Romero (strained forearm) is pitching in the instructional league and is not likely to significantly improve, though the team has not ruled out his return.

Park will participate in fielding drills early this week to test his strained right hamstring; Amaro said that the righthander could still pitch in the regular season.

If those pitchers return, the Phils will be forced to guess how healthy and durable they would be in the playoffs. "In some ways, we'll have to be projecting," Amaro said.

The GM added that he might wait until the deadline to name a roster for the division series, which is 10 a.m. on the day of Game 1. Until then, the composition of his bullpen will remain fluid.

"I don't think anybody in our bullpen necessarily deserves to be a slam dunk" to make the roster, he said.

Raul Ibanez was a late scratch from the starting lineup last night with a stomach virus. Ben Francisco started in left field for Ibanez.