Now that Chase Utley has addressed his injury situation, the focus has apparently shifted from the injury to Utleys and the Phillies handling of information.
Professional athletes and teams have become increasingly cryptic when it comes to injuries. In a world where injury descriptions have melted down to upper-body or lower-body, Utley and the Phillies seem to be carrying on what has become a grand tradition.
While its a policy that carries a modicum of logic in sports like football and hockey, its hard to imagine a situation where an opponent would target Utleys knees in an attempt to exacerbate his knee injuries.
That, however, is beside the point. The question for many is, Why havent Utley and the Phillies been more open about what is going on?
Lets answer that question by eliminating some wrong answers.
Its not a conspiracy. Utley and the Phillies are not sitting behind close doors plotting ways to frustrate the media and fans by sending out vague, infrequent messages. Utley makes too much money to care about that and it serves the Phillies no benefit.
There is no doubting Utleys surprise that people might be interested in his health status is, at best, naive. But Utley is too smart to actually believe what he said. He knows why people want to know about his knees and his ability to play. Furthermore, hes been around Philadelphia long enough to know that when you dont address a situation, it will fester into rumors and speculation.
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So why then have Utley and the Phillies been so quiet about the second basemans health status? Believe it or not, I have a theory.
Theres no way to prove the following statement, but Im confident of its validity: Chase Utley is the most revered member of the Phillies organization.
Notice, the word is revered not respected. In my five years working as CSNs Phillies field producer, David Montgomery, Pat Gillick, and Roy Halladay are a few notables that I would say garner every member of the organizations respect.
But only Utley is revered. Hes the team leader. The player that many members of the front office would have wanted to be. In many ways, he is the embodiment of everything the Phillies believe to be good in baseball.
Only now, the embodiment is having body issues. Utleys injured knees have rendered him mortal.
And thats where the silence and vagueness have come from. Understandably, Utley doesnt want to stare down the backside of his career. The Phillies, on the other hand, are having a difficult time coming to grips with the fact that their signature knight has a debilitating chink in his armor. One thats never going away.
So both player and franchise say not to worry and that things will eventually get better. Not because they are actively misleading us. But because they need to lie to themselves. Neither wants to live in a world where Utley is just another member of the team.
The five-time all-star can see as many specialists as he wants. He can says his prayers, take his vitamins, use the support of Utleymania. He can even win another World Series. But those knees will never be 100 percent again.
Its a fact that signifies the eventual end of this Phillies' Camelot.
E-mail Casey Feeney at kfeeney@comcastsportsnet.com