Well if he says it's OK, it's OK

From Todd Zolecki of the Philly Inquirer:

Cole Hamels said he never was worried about the results of yesterday's MRI exam of his injured left elbow.

"Every time I've listened to my gut, it's worked," the Phillies' ace said yesterday at Citizens Bank Park. "And so I knew it wasn't anything serious. I knew it wasn't anything that had to do with the ulnar collateral ligament, the Tommy John ligament. I just knew there wasn't something right. It was having a little minor muscle strain. That's nothing too big."

It's serious enough that the Phillies placed Hamels on the 15-day disabled list. But they also said the lefthander's elbow has no structural damage - which means the ligament is intact - and are calling the injury a "very minor" elbow strain.

Hamels is eligible to be activated from the disabled list Sept. 1, and he said he was very confident he would miss no more than his next two starts.

"This was very good news, considering," assistant general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said.

Lefthander Fabio Castro will take Hamels' place in the rotation this afternoon in the series finale against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Castro was 1-4 with a 4.23 ERA in six starts for triple-A Ottawa.

All you need to know about the Phillies and injuries, though, is this little gem from when Chase Utley broke his hand. It was a commenter on Beerleaguer.com who put it best: "Chase could have his arm amputated tonight and the Phillies would say he's day-to-day."

So not so much with the upfront, but here's hoping Hamels is back for the "stretch run," which included a 15-3 drubbing by the Dodgers last night. Awesome.