Skip to main content

Blanton Speaks to the World


After Joe Blanton's rehab appearance with the Phillies single A club, the Lakewood BlueClaws, on Tuesday evening, he spoke to the media. Here's a run down of some things the injured pitcher had to say...


On the outing (2 innings, 2 strike outs, 13 pitches, 11 for strikes)...

I went out, good long toss, good bullpen. No pain with either one. If I had normal 5 days rest I probably would have thrown more pitches. I threw a lot in the bullpen and had a good long toss, so I'll just take that into my next rehab start.


On if he wanted to pitch another inning, as he undercut his expected pitch limit of 30 by shutting down the Hagerstown team on 13 pitches over 2 innings...

That was the plan, to go that far. I think I have an outing in a couple days, so...


On if he feels like he is ahead of schedule for a return to the big league club...

I think (the estimate for down time) was 3-6 weeks and I think the whole time we were shooting for the 3. Be optimistic....I've never been hurt before, so I didn't really know how to take it one way or the other, so that's what we were shooting for.


On if there have been lingering effects from the injury or soreness...

No. I threw two bullpens with a day off in between in Philly, and there was a day off before this one. I never felt any soreness from any of those and I never got stiff. Tomorrow will be another good test to see how I feel after some game action. Ya know, (I) put a little more effort level behind the pitches.


On his estimated return date with the Phillies...

It's kind of up to (the team). All I can do...is do what I can do, listen to the trainers and get myself healthy. My mechanics are pretty (much) there.


On his impression of FirstEnergy Park in Lakewood...

It was good. I was only out there a couple of innings, but....I've never pitched in "the SALLY League" before...so it looked like a really nice park and a good crowd and a really nice stadium.


On the extent of his next rehab outing...

I'll see what the plan is. Probably around 45-50 (pitches), about 3-5 innings. I'm just guessing.


On what he's been up to during the down time...

There wasn't a whole lot of days off. I've been doing a lot of arm exercises, from when I got hurt, so I kept my shoulder and elbow nice and strong. I've been playing long toss for a good bit too.


On if he feels the late start after the DL stint could help him in the long run this season, rest wise....

Not really. I've been a 200 inning guy. I haven't always gotten 200-plus, but I've always been around basically 194-197. Always like that, and usually as the season goes, I get better. I hope to still push to 200 (innings).


On who his favorite pitcher was growing up...

Nolan Ryan. Just tough-nosed...went out there everyday. You could see his intensity on the mound, that's what I always liked.



-----------------------------------

Read all about Blanton's Lakewood rehab outing by clicking HERE.

Check me out on the radio today, talking Phillies baseball with The Shore Sports Report. I should be on around 3:20pm with Mike & Joe. Tune in on WOBM AM 1160 and Fox Sports 1310 AM by the shore...or listen live on the web by clicking here.

Follow PhoulBallz.com on Twitter HERE.


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Rappers in Phillies Caps

Weekend greetings to you phine pholks out there. Today's post features pictures of rappers wearing Phillies caps. Why rappers in Phillies caps, you ask? Because... Any other questions? We will start things off properly by going with a highly recognizable hip hop star. 50 Cent stays constantly relavant by consistantly creating radio friendly material to help sell (G) units, while he "keeps it real" by still rapping about the thug life he lived before becoming the 2nd highest earning black entertainer in America. 50 is seen here in a recent interview rocking a throw-back Phillies cap. Next up we'll use a throw-back screen cap from what may be the very first major appearance by a rapper wearing Phillies gear. Chuck D, of legendary rap group Public Enemy, wore a Phillies cap in the music video for rap anthem Fight The Power in 1989. The song was the lead single from the soundtrack for Spike Lee's film Do The Right Thing . Next up we'll go with some home grown tal...

Michael Taylor Q&A

Michael Taylor is currently leading the Reading Phillies' offense and is near the top of the Eastern League in most stat categories (3rd in batting avg- .342, 3rd in HR- 14, tied for second in RBI- 55, 2nd in OPS.- .994, tied for 1st in runs scored- 49, tied for 1st in hits...). The 23 year old Taylor is 6 feet 6 inches tall and has quickly grabbed the attention of phans and media alike as a top prospect to watch. I spoke with Mike Taylor over the weekend, and here is that interview. With all the big stats and being among the league leaders in so many categories, do you think you're ready for the next step? It's kind of a difficult question. Do you have anything left to prove here? There's always something to prove. There's stuff to prove every game. I mean that's one thing that's very interesting about this game. It's such a numbers oriented game. You're only as good as your last "whatever statistical category that someone's valuing". ...

Ibanez Makes Hall of Fame History

It's every player's dream to be enshrined in the National Baseball Hall of Fame. For Raul Ibanez , who hasn't had the sort of career that would ensure his face would one day be cast in bronze and displayed on the Hall walls, it was necessary to find a less common way to earn a spot in the annals of baseball history. Recently, Ibanez became the very first big league player to spend the night in the plaque gallery at the storied Hall of Fame. As detailed on the National Baseball Hall of Fame's website , Ibanez accompanied his son's Little League travel team to the Hall, where they participated in the Museum's "Extra Innings Overnight", a program that allows groups to travel to Cooperstown, NY in order learn more about the great game of baseball. Ibanez's son, Raul Jr., is 11-years-old and plays baseball in Lower Merion, PA. The article on the Hall of Fame's website quoted Ibanez as being excited to see some recent Phillies milestones represent...