I hate to say I told you so, but...

Yeah, yeah no one likes a smart guy -- especially one who rubs it in and gloats. Then again, there really isn't much need to gloat when my solid premise about Cole Hamels and his durabilty is just a few posts down. There was no way he could go an entire season without breaking down, it says.

And...

There's no reason why he should have started the seventh inning in his last start when it took him 90 pitches to get through six.

But of course hindsight is always 20-20 and there is no pleasure taken out of another man's pain. That's especially the case when the guy in question is so much fun to watch.

Nevertheless, Cole Hamels, the Phillies' super phenom, is sitting inNew York and watching the ballgame on the newest Comcast SportsNet (shameless plug) after he felt a pop and some soreness in his left shoulder while throwing before Tuesday night's game at Shea. In fact, Hamels was probably watching last night's game on Comcast SportsNet since he went back to Philly during the game, but we'll touch on that in a moment. Let's deal with Hamels first.

To say that Hamels in injury prone or delicate would be like saying Michael Jordan was a pretty good basketball player. Yes, it's correct, but there's a lot more to it than that. The Phillies, or whomever Hamels ends up pitching for through his days in the Major Leagues, will have to just accept routine stints on the disabled list like the one Hamels is going through now.

The good news is that this injury doesn't sound too serious -- at least based on the following paragraphs from the Phillies' official statement. To wit:

The diagnosis [strained left shoulder] came following an examination by Phillies team physician Dr. Michael Ciccotti and an MRI at the Rothman Institute at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital.

According to Dr. Ciccotti, the MRI revealed no structural damage to his shoulder. Hamels will be treated medically and through an exercise program.

The other piece of good news is already known -- Hamels is tough. Oh sure, he looks like a movie star, and probably needs a Roger Clemens-esque workout regime (who doesn't?), but this kid has... how can we say this without being vulgar... cojones. Big ones. He is the opposite of his pal Gavin Floyd in that he pitches and plays without self-doubt or fear. In a sense, Hamels is a lot like the pitching version of Chase Utley or Aaron Rowand.

But, that's the thing... those little aches and pains and the everyday rigors of professional baseball seem to take a much harsher toll on Hamels' body.

Oh yeah, we forgot to tell you...
The local scribes sitting in the old, cramped and uncomfortable press box at good ol' Shea showed up at the park at 3:30 p.m. yesterday. No surprise there, because that's what time writers always show up at the ballpark. The thing about that was that the game didn't end until after 12:30 a.m. and they were not told about Hamels' injury until after the game.

Hamels, as everyone knows now, was injured before the game.

So in the two hours from batting practice until game time and then the five-hours, 22-minutes it took to actually play last night's game, the Phillies did not think to inform the local press (and in turn, the fans) that Hamels had left the park to return to Philadelphia, and would not be pitching on Wednesday for close to 10 hours.

Seriously.

Yeah, I know. The fans aren't interested in the plight of the press. Though as an aside, it always interested me before I got into the business. Actually, I always found the entire soap opera interesting and looked at the writers as just as much a part of the show as the players, but that's me. But the problem seems to be with accountability. The writers are the pipeline to the fans. That's not something to take delicately by any group.

Now I didn't make the trip to Shea this week, which is a story to come later. Besides, there are two more trips to the most difficult ballpark to get to, as well as a full slate of trips during the month of June. Nevertheless, I'm usually just an IM or call away from constant comminique with the folks in the press box, so I'm pretty plugged in.

When I heard that the Phillies didn't reveal the injury until after the game, I figured the team was trying to conceal something from the Mets. Why let them know that the Kid isn't going to pitch. But then Mike Radano set me straight -- as he often does -- and told me my thinking was a bunch of hooey.

"Did they think maybe no one would notice Jon Lieber on the mound tomorrow?" Radano said and wrote in his blog.

Here's the thing -- general manager Pat Gillick has a good relationship with the writers, and everyone really seems to like him. Actually, he really is an impressive professional and I suppose he was just trying to protect his player.

It just turned a really long night into an even longer one.

Insert whiner/crybaby noise here.

News stuff
After firing seven innings starting in the ninth inning last night, Ryan Madson will take the ball on Sunday against Milwaukee. Gavin Floyd will start on Saturday.
***

I'm not basing this on anything, but I bet the Mets' trade for Orlando Hernandez (for Jorge Julio) from Arizona will trigger a few more deals in the NL East.

Finally
Is this turning into the Cole Hamels blog? Geez, isn't there anything else to write about?