Chase Utley has returned to the Phillies!

He's back! The Phillies got some great news as Chase Utley, who had been sidelined since June 28th with an injured thumb, has been activated from the disabled list and is ready to step back into the starting lineup. While the original diagnosis called for Utley to be out until late August, he has once again shown a remarkable ability to heal and is ready well ahead of schedule. It's great timing for the Phillies, who remain 2.5 games behind the Braves despite not having their best hitter in the lineup for well over a month.

To make room for Utley, the Phillies have once again designated Greg Dobbs for assignment. As you may recall, Dobbs was DFA'd back in June but managed to get back to the majors after a short stint in Triple A. I'm not sure why the Phillies aren't sending Domonic Brown so he can actually get some playing time; I guess they are fine with him getting only occasional at-bats with the big club.

Phillies put Utley, Polanco on the DL

This injury stuff is really getting ridiculous. Just when it looked like they might be getting close to having a healthy lineup again, the Phillies today announced that both Chase Utley and Placido Polanco have been placed on the 15 day disabled list. Talk about a double dose of bad news.

Utley's injury is a sprained thumb that occurred last night when he slid into second base attempting to stretch a single into a double. While the Phillies still haven't revealed the actual extent of the injury, they will definitely be without their star second baseman for the next few weeks.

As for Polanco, he's been dealing with an elbow injury all season long and needs the time off to allow it to heal. Polanco hasn't played since the first game of the Blue Jays series so he was likely retroactively placed on the 15 day DL.

With two roster spots now opened up, the Phillies have called up Greg Dobbs and Brian Bocock from Lehigh. Neither player deserves to be on the major league roster but the Phillies infield is spread incredibly thin at this time. As it is, if the Phillies don't make a trade over the next two weeks, you are going to see Wilson Valdez and Juan Castro starting on a daily basis. For a team that already struggles to score, having those two toiling at the bottom of the order is going to make things even uglier.

No, it's not quite time to panic just yet, Phillies fans. Losing Utley and Polanco are tough blows but neither has an injury that sounds too serious. Now, if Jimmy Rollins suffers a setback and the team is forced to go with Dobbs or Bocock on a daily basis....

Phillies moves: Rollins is back, Ruiz to the DL, Dobbs a goner

The Phillies made a series of moves in preparation for their series against the Indians:

*Jimmy Rollins was activated from the disabled list
*Greg Dobbs was designated for assignment
*Carlos Ruiz was put on the disabled list
*Mike Zagurski was called up from the minors
*Scott Mathieson has cleared and was optioned to the minors

The biggest move out of all of these is the return of Jimmy Rollins to the lineup. Rollins, who has played a grand total of 14 games this season, should immediately help a struggling offense. While Wilson Valdez and Juan Castro have played well at times, adding J-Roll adds another dangerous bat to the mix. Hopefully he stays healthy this time.

On the other hand, losing Carlos Ruiz, who was put on the DL retroactive to June 19th due to concussion issues, will hurt the offense as the Phillies are forced to turn to Brian Schneider and Dan Sardinha at catcher. Hopefully the concussion symptoms go away quickly for Ruiz and he can be back sometime before the All-Star break.

As for the loss of Greg Dobbs, I join with many Phillies fans in saying good riddance. While Dobbs was once a reliable pinch hitter, his .152 average and meager power this season have turned him into a useless bench player. With no glove to go with no bat, the Phillies made the right call in keeping Valdez and dropping Dobbs.

Finally, Mike Zagurski's return to the Phillies is a nice story because he hasn't pitched in the majors since 2007. Much like Scott Mathieson, Zagurski has made the long recovery from Tommy John surgery and earned another shot in the Phillies pen. The big lefty doesn't have great career numbers (5.91 ERA) but it's always nice to have a second left handed option to call upon.

As the dust settles from this flurry of moves, the Phillies come out with a slightly better lineup and bench. Yes, Carlos Ruiz being out will make the bottom of the order a pair of automatic outs in a row but having Rollins back at the top keeps things from being a complete black hole at 7-8-9. With Rollins back, I'm interested to see what Charlie Manuel does with the order. It's probably safe to assume that Jimmy Rollins will slot back in the leadoff spot but will Shane Victorino bat 2nd or 7th? If everyone starts hitting like they can (a big if, I know), the Phillies lineup should be back to being the best in the NL in the 1-7 spots.

King Cole will reign over Philly for 3 more years

World Series MVP Cole Hamels was due for a big raise and he got it today. Hamels and the Phillies agreed to a 3 year, 20.5 million dollar contract, a deal that takes him through his remaining arbitration years. There are also several bonuses worked into the deal if Hamels wins a Cy Young, makes the All Star team or is the World Series MVP again.

Kudos to the Phillies, and to Hamels, for getting this deal done. It's a pretty reasonable deal considering the amount of money C.C. Sabathia got so Hamels should be commended for that. King Cole will become a free agent when the deal expires in 2012 so he could leave town at that point, but it's nice to know he will be anchoring the Phillies staff for the next few years.

The Phillies still have a few more contract situations to work out, including some that may prove to be difficult. Ryan Howard is going to expect a fat contract but I don't think the Phillies will give him one. Ryan Madson is another arbitration-eligible player that won't likely come to terms anytime soon and has already turned down a 3 year offer. Besides Hamels, Greg Dobbs, who signed for 2 years, 2.5 million, is the only other Phillie to agree to a contract. Joe Blanton, Chad Durbin, Shane Victorino and Jayson Werth are the rest of the Phillies who are arbitration-eligible and will need deals to be worked out.

The next three years of King Cole should be fun to watch. Let's see if he can be the ace of another World Series pitching staff.