The relief expressed by Brewers right-hander Yovani Gallardo on Thursday
was
painfully short-lived. Gallardo has a torn anterior cruciate ligament in
his
right knee that likely will require surgery and could end his season.
The team placed Gallardo, who started the year on the disabled list after
undergoing left knee surgery in Spring Training and was to be a crucial
member of the Brewers starting rotation, on the 15-day disabled list.
Right-hander Dave Bush was recalled from Triple-A Nashville.
Club officials will consider surgical options for Gallardo once the
swelling
in his knee subsides.
"Pretty devastating," Brewers general manager Doug Melvin said. "Pretty
tough."
On Thursday, Gallardo tangled with Cubs outfielder Reed Johnson near first
base in the fifth inning and appeared to twist or hyperextend his right
knee. Gallardo appeared to be in pain, then shook off the initial shock of
the incident, returned to the mound to finish the inning and then went
back
out for the sixth, surrendering two runs.
Gallardo said he was initially frightened more than injured, and after the
game insisted he wasn't feeling any soreness or pain. Brewers manager Ned
Yost and head athletic trainer Roger Caplinger checked in with Gallardo in
the fifth and again in the sixth inning to make sure he was not feeling
any
discomfort.
When Gallardo insisted he was fine, he was allowed to pitch. While the
team
traveled to Houston, Gallardo bused back to Milwaukee to see head team
physician William Raasch for an examination.
"The doctor said no further damage could have happened by going back out
to
pitch," Melvin said. "Once it's torn, it's torn. Going out to pitch didn't
cause any additional problems."
The Brewers wound up rallying for three runs in the ninth to stun the
Cubs,
and headed to Houston feeling good about the win and Gallardo's apparent
good fortune. Two days earlier, ace Ben Sheets returned to the rotation
after missing a start with a sore right triceps.
"The key is we never get Yovani and Ben together," a disappointed Melvin
said.
Last year, Gallardo was called up from the Minors and spent much of the
summer filling in for Sheets, who was on the DL with a finger injury.
Gallardo went 9-5 with a 3.67 ERA in the big leagues.
The last Brewers player to sustain a torn ACL was infielder Tony
Graffanino,
who was injured in a game that Gallardo started last August. Graffanino
had
torn his before, and he continues to rehabilitate as a free agent.
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