SHEETS UPDATE

- A dynamic ultrasound done on Ben's finger this morning revealed that there is a partial tear in his muscle tissue. The word from the Brewers is that his estimated time out will be 4-6 weeks. Ned Yost had this to say:

"The A4 little holder-on to the tendon on his finger has a slight little tear in it," said Yost. "It's not completely torn. It's still supporting his tendon nicely. "So what we're going to do is we're going to rest him for a couple of days and see if his finger feels better and then we'll start him on a rehab program. How long we're going to rest him depends on how long it takes for the finger to feel a little better."

- 4 to 6 weeks should bring him back by the first week in September at the latest... no surgery will be needed, just a lot of rest and rehab. - It looks like Yost has decided on 21-year-old Yovani Gallardo to replace Sheets in the rotation despite the concern to limit hit innings. The Brewers brass had previously said if Sheets' injury is more in the short term nature then Gallardo would be the replacement... but a month to a month and half doesn't seem all that short term. Especially when they said the plan was to bring Yo in for full-time duty around August. We'll see how they handle the situation with Yo, it's also feasible that Manny Parra could start if they feel Yo will put on too many innings. Personally I want to see Yo as much as possible, as does everyone...but you know Melvin, Ash and company don't want a Kerry Wood situation. This is what Melvin had to say (courtesy of brewers.com):

Gallardo threw 145 innings at two Minor League stops in 2006, and the Brewers ideally would let him reach the 170-175 inning mark this season and then bump to the 200-inning plateau in 2008. General manager Doug Melvin commissioned his son, Corey, to compile a list of young pitchers' workloads from year to year and whether they experienced health issues after a more dramatic spike. Often, they did.

So will the Brewers have to limit Gallardo's innings?

"We'll try to find ways. But we need him now," Melvin said. "We'll just have to keep out eye on it. You see what it did to the Marlins starters -- three starters from last year. The history of [Cubs' right-hander] Kerry Wood. [Gallardo] has a good delivery, but he doesn't have a lot of innings."

** See also my earlier thoughts on the initial post of Sheets' freak injury.

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