Relievers react to Howell’s injury

Posted Mar 20, 2010 by Roger Mooney

Updated Mar 20, 2010 at 10:33 AM

ROGER MOONEY

PORT CHARLOTTE Most of the Rays didn’t hear the news that J.P. Howell will miss at least the first month of the season with a “weak” left shoulder until they arrived at the Charlotte Sports Park clubhouse this morning.

They expressed concern for Howell and hoped the left-hander who pitched more innings than any Rays reliever over the past two seasons makes it back quick.

“J.P.‘s huge,” Grant Balfour said. “He’s the guy that can come in pretty much anytime late in the game for any (batter) and get the job done. Hopefully, we can hold it together until he gets back.”

Said Dan Wheeler: “It’s a big loss for us, obviously, but we got to go about it. We got to pick him up because he’s picked us up so much in the last two years, so it’s kind of our turn to pick him up.”

The Rays are concerned about the lack of strength in Howell’s left shoulder, so much that Howell was examined by team orthopedic Dr. Koco Eaton on Friday. Rays manager Joe Maddon said Howell will miss 2 to 4 weeks, which will keep him off the Opening Day roster and force the Rays to go without their durable reliever until May.

“I said we’d rather have you at the end of the season than right now. If you’re going to miss some time, we’d all rather see him do it right now and get strong and ready to pitch so we can have him at the end when, hopefully, we’re in playoff contention, making a run to hopefully the World Series,” Wheeler said.

Wheeler compared the loss of Howell to the loss of closer Troy Percival during the 2008 season.

“He was a big piece to our puzzle,” Wheeler said of Percival.

So was Howell, who was the Rays middle innings “closer” in 2008 and served as the closer last season until fatigue caused by his workload since the start of 2008 took its toll.

“J.P., just being left-handed, being able to go out there and get the lefties and righties out, if we had to, we could throw him three innings,” Wheeler said. “It seemed like the kid just kept coming back and coming back.”

Wheeler said he’s confident Howell will return to his productive self this season.

“With a little hard work, and that’s one thing you’re going to get out of J.P. is hard work,” Wheeler said. “I think he understands what we have here, and he wants to be a part of it, so you just put a little bit of time in now, which he is doing and he has been doing. It’ll be tough to miss him for a month, but hopefully it’s all it is, a month.”