Like crocuses popping up, swallows returning and Easter candy at the drug store, the surest sign of spring's return is the annual Shawn Hill injury.
Hill was scratched from today's start and is on his way to beautiful Pensacola to see Dr. James Andrews -- Hill's own merchant of death.
The Canadian ground-ball machine has a long history of elbow/forearm injury. He's never made it through an entire season without some nerve in his arm exploding. He had Tommy John surgery -- where they replaced a ligament in his elbow -- a few years back, but it never fully healed his arm.
The Nats are taking a rosy front though. Even if they can't count on Hill, they're citing Jordan Zimmermann and Colin Balester as their depth.
Great. Zimmermann's certainly got a world of potential, but one of them was likely guaranteed a job anyway. The other would've been depth. Now if the other has a job, too, where's the depth?
They've got Gustavo Chacin -- and his rockin' perfume -- and Shairon Martis. But there's a reason that those two weren't mentioned before today: They're not very good.
Stan Kasten doesn't like to pay big money for free agent pitchers. And, in general, he's right. They typically cost more than they're worth.
But the Nats lack starting pitching depth this year. Most pitchers get injured, even for a week or two at a time. And the Nats don't have as much cover as they had last year. If Hill can't go, or if Balester struggles to perform, what's the plan?
I'm sure Mike Bacsik would listen if the Nationals called.
Now that's something that's certainly scarier to Nats fans than the idea of one of their pitchers visiting Dr. Andrews.
Chris Needham used to write Capitol Punishment. He didn't make it all the way through last season either.
