End of an era? Moyer to the DL as Phillies pursue pitching help

We may have seen the last of Jamie Moyer in Philadelphia. According to Todd Zolecki on Twitter, the Phillies will place Moyer on the disabled list due to the left elbow strain he suffered against the Cardinals on Tuesday. The injury is believed to be similar to the one J.A. Happ suffered that kept him out for three months, meaning Moyer's season could very well done. Since Moyer's contract also runs out at the end of this year, it's possible that he won't be suiting up for the Phillies ever again. While you can bet he will try to continue his career if he is able to, this would certainly be a sad way to see Moyer leave the Phillies.

As for who will replace Moyer in the rotation, the Phillies are expected to call up Happ, who was pulled early from his start at Lehigh Valley and will probably join the team shortly.

Of course, bringing up Happ is only one piece of the puzzle since the Phillies have another rotation spot to fill. According to Jayson Stark of ESPN, the Phillies are working on a major trade that could see them bring in a top starting pitcher and then ship out Jayson Werth in a separate trade to get some prospects in return. The pitching names rumored to be targeted include top pitchers like Roy Oswalt and Dan Haren as well as lesser choices like Ben Sheets and Jeremy Guthrie. Look for the Phillies to try to bring in someone who they will have under contract for at least another season beyond this year since bringing in a rental would be a waste of their resources.

Should the Phillies deal Werth, minor league sensation Domonic Brown will step into his spot and play every day. While Brown is yet another lefty bat to add to an already lefty-heavy team, with the way he is tearing up Triple A he deserves a spot on the big club.

Expect the Phillies to make these moves quickly and not wait until the trade deadline; Ruben Amaro needs to get something done quickly if he wants to keep the Phillies rapidly diminishing playoff hopes alive.