The Official Site of Chase Utley

Sat, Jun 19th 2010, 14:54

Utley's hot start answers health concerns

Chase Utley said Friday he is a private person, so he probably would not admit if an injury affected his play.

Utley then said he is fine.

The Phillies said he is fine, too.

He looked fine Friday night against the Minnesota Twins at Citizens Bank Park. Utley, who dismissed a report before the game that he has an injured right knee, singled and scored from first on a triple in the first inning, hit a three-run home run to right field in the second inning, and made a fantastic diving catch in the third inning. He went 2-for-5 with four RBIs in a 9-5 victory.

Why all the fuss? Utley entered the game hitting just .257 with 10 home runs, 26 RBIs and an .829 on-base-plus-slugging percentage — the lowest OPS of his career since he became an everyday player in 2005. Many had suspected Utley was hurt — Utley said Tuesday in New York, “As far as I know I’m healthy, yes” — and Phillies first-base coach Davey Lopes fueled those suspicions when he told Baseball Prospectus, “Chase has been hampered by a little bit of a knee injury.”

“I think there’s a little confusion and maybe a little bit of a difference of opinion with what Davey said,” Utley said before the game. “In my opinion, an injury is something that keeps you off the field. When you play 162-games-plus over the course of the year, you’re going to have aches and pains. That’s part of this game. That’s part of being a baseball player. In my opinion there’s no injury whatsoever.”

Utley acknowledged he has had occasional soreness in his right knee, and Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. acknowledged Utley has been on the team’s injury report, although Amaro said most of the team has been on the report.

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