Notes: Hollandsworth shut down
Bone, nerve damage revealed in MRI of right leg
By Carrie Muskat / MLB.com


The Cubs will be without Todd Hollandsworth for at least the next 10
days. (M. Spencer Green/AP)



CHICAGO -- Chicago Cubs outfielder Todd Hollandsworth is not making
enough progress and will be shut down for at least 10 days in an
attempt to give his right leg time to heal.
Hollandsworth had an MRI on Tuesday, his third since June 27 when he
injured his leg by fouling a ball off his right shin.

The latest MRI showed inflammation around the bone and some
irritation in the nerve, Cubs trainer Dave Groeschner said on
Tuesday. Groeschner said they are comparing the test results with
the X-rays from 2001, when he suffered a season-ending injury on May
11 to his right leg.

"There's some similar findings, so obviously, there's concern that
we might be getting into a repeat of that situation," Groeschner
said.

In 2001, Hollandsworth fouled a ball off his right leg and fractured
his shin and crushed a nerve. He appeared in 33 games that year with
the Colorado Rockies.

Could Hollandsworth be done for the season?

"I don't think we're to that point now," Groeschner said. "We're
going to step back and immobilize him for 10 days to two weeks and
see if we can get this thing to calm down. At this point, we're
running in circles. He feels better, we have him do activity and he
develops discomfort. You rest him and he feels better."

The Cubs miss Hollandsworth's bat off the bench. He was hitting .318
overall and 9-for-16 off the bench.

"He's mentally frustrated," Groeschner said of Hollandsworth. "He
wants to play. He's here. He wants to contribute and, being here
every day, he's upset he can't help us out. He feels he's getting
better and then he takes a step backward. He's been unbelievably
great about it."

However, Hollandsworth is running out of time this season. There are
eight weeks remaining.

"If, in two weeks, he's feeling really good, we'll start the
activity back," Groeschner said. "I think if we can get all the
discomfort out of his leg, he'll come back to baseball quickly. He
is able to do a lot of things, but he can't do the baseball-related
things for a prolonged time. I can have him go hit, and he's fine.
If I have him hit day after day, it bothers him."

The matter is complicated because both Hollandsworth's shin and the
nerve are sore.

"Some days, it's both, and one day, it's one and not the other,"
Groeschner said. "It's been a back and forth thing."