The Kansas City Royals are caught in a tough position when it comes to Felipe Paulino’s injury all the way around. The biggest issue, of course, is that the team’s best pitcher in 2012 is not going to make his next scheduled start. Further complicating the situation is that his roster spot is also in flux given the indefinite nature of the injury.
Dayton Moore spoke recently about the loss of Paulino and noted that the team doesn’t want to make an official move if they don’t have to.
"I don’t know yet. I’m optimistic, but it’s probably going to be about 48 hours before we get a true indication," Moore said. "We don’t want to put him on the DL if he’s only going to miss one start or two starts."
Yet at the same time, Paulino’s spot could be taken by another pitcher to help ease the load if Paulino is going to miss significant time. Instead of being at full strength, the Royals will be a man down for the next several games.
"We’re still evaluating. He’s a little better today," Moore said on Thursday. "I’m keeping my fingers crossed there. He’s a pretty quick healer, but we’ll see."
Paulino is 3-1 with a 1.67 ERA in 7 starts this year.
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