Daily Dose: Handled With Care

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Shelby Miller had struggled to go deep in games in recent weeks. Still, exiting after one batter on Wednesday was excessive, even by his standards.

Miller threw just two pitches in his start against the Dodgers before exiting with a right elbow contusion. Miller took a Carl Crawford line drive off the elbow -- the liner resulted in a double for the outfielder -- and left promptly with the Cardinals training staff.

X-rays on the elbow came back negative, so it doesn't seem as though the 22-year-old will require a stint on the disabled list. Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said more on Miller's status would be known in a day or two.

"It's too early to tell," Matheny told Fox Sports Midwest. "We talked to the trainers. They won't know enough until the next couple days."

Miller, for his part, was more optimistic.

"It (elbow) feels good," Miller told Fox Sports Midwest after the game. "I mean, it doesn't feel good. But it's better than it could be."

Rays starter Chris Archer has expressed similar hopes for a quick return after leaving his start against the Diamondbacks on Wednesday with right forearm stiffness. The 24-year-old allowed one run over 1 2/3 innings before being removed, but the team and Archer said the move was more precautionary than anything.

And the teams have reason to be cautious with their young guns. Archer was 6-4 with a 2.65 ERA through 12 starts heading into Wednesday, while Miller, after some struggles just before the All-Star break, is 11-7 with a 2.89 ERA and a 132/35 K/BB ratio in 121 1/3 innings.

It's not just the teams that were worried about their pitchers. That noise you just heard? That was the collective exhale from fantasy owners of the two phenoms.

Click here for the latest MLB Player News including the most recent updates on Miller, Archer and the rest of the league, and follow @Nate_Grimm and @Rotoworld_BB on Twitter while you're at it.

Halladay Just Weeks Away?

From the very young to the, uh, not so young, Roy Halladay may be close to returning to the Phillies rotation.

The 36-year-old has been rehabbing his surgically repaired shoulder and threw a five inning simulated game on Monday. He felt good in the days after, and the Phillies felt good enough about Halladay's progress that he's traveling to the Phillies' spring training complex in Clearwater, Florida, to start facing live hitters.

The timetable for a return has been late August from the beginning, so Halladay could potentially contribute for the final month for teams looking for a late push. The reports all along have been positive in regards to Halladay's recovery, with Phillies pitching coach Rich Dubee raving about Halladay's progress after a throwing session in late June. At the time, Dubee said Halladay looked "very, very good."

"The arm action, he's able to get his arm back up very easily," Dubee said at the time. "No effort at all. Whereas before because of the stuff that he had going on in his shoulder, he couldn't get it up on a consistent basis. But now his arm slot is fantastic and he's doing very very well so far. He's a long ways from pitching, but everything so far is going to according to plan."

Whether it will translate into better results remains to be seen. Halladay struggled to a 2-4 record and 8.65 ERA in seven starts before the surgery, looking like a far cry from the Phillies' ace who won 19 games in 2011. But a healthy and rested Halladay could provide five or six good starts down the stretch for a contender. If nothing else, monitor the right-hander's progress in his continued rehab as he works his way closer to Philadelphia.

Disabled CarGo

After days of the "will he, won't he" questions, Carlos Gonzalez officially landed on the disabled list on Wednesday.

CarGo has been bothered by a sprain of his right middle finger for over a week. Originally the Rockies gave him a few days off in hopes a bit of rest would do the trick, but two setbacks in the last few days forced the team to finally shelve their star outfielder.

Now that he's sidelined, the question is for how long. The injury was once deemed playable, but now he may miss the better part of a month allowing it to fully heal. Rockies trainer Keith Dugger said the healing process could last into September.

"Once you injure it, it can take four to six weeks to heal completely," Dugger told the Denver Post. "CarGo was aggravating the finger when he swung the bat. Hopefully this rest will help. Actually, I know it will help some. We'll see how much."

The Rockies didn't make a move to bring up another outfielder in CarGo's place, so it seems they'll roll with Corey Dickerson and Charlie Blackmon in his absence. Neither player can begin to replace the production the Rockies are missing without Gonzalez, and neither is an attractive fantasy option, either. Gonzalez was batting .302/.367/.591 with 26 home runs and 21 stolen bases at the time of his injury.

National League Quick Hits: Ross Ohlendorf (shoulder) threw a 20-pitch bullpen session on Wednesday. He's on track to rejoin the Nationals' rotation in mid-August ... Jordan Schafer (ankle) will be activated by the Braves on Saturday ... Brian Wilson (elbow) will began a rehab assignment with High-A Rancho Cucamonga on Wednesday, needing eight pitches to work a scoreless inning ... Chase Utley signed a two-year, $27 million deal to stay in Philadelphia ... X-rays on Dioner Navarro's ankle came back negative after he was in a collision at home plate on Wednesday ... Rickie Weeks injured his left hamstring running to first base during Wednesday's game. A trip to the disabled list is likely, but he's day-to-day for now ... with Jake Westbrook getting called into action unexpectedly on Wednesday, the Cardinals announced Carlos Martinez will be recalled to make a spot start in his place on Thursday.

American League Quick Hits: Salvador Perez (concussion) has been cleared for a light workout ... Matt Moore (elbow) is hoping to throw off a mound soon. He threw long toss on Wednesday and will play catch again on Friday ... Jason Hammel (forearm) will attempt to throw on Friday. He felt some discomfort while attempting to throw on Tuesday ... Darin Mastroianni (ankle) was removed from his rehab game at Triple-A Rochester on Wednesday with a hyperextended right knee. The setback will likely hold him out a few games ... Ryan Doumit left Wednesday's game due to nausea and will likely be placed on the disabled list with concussion-like symptoms. He sustained the original injury after taking a foul tip to the head during Sunday's game ... Wil Myers left Wednesday's game with asthma-related problems. Baseball stars: they're just like you and me.