Wow, they'll hand the keys to anyone

Yes, this is Dennis Deitch, live from Washington D.C., and the blog is open for business.

The first post will be short and sweet: Adam Eaton is out, via a 15-day D.L. stint for a sore shoulder that wouldn't be sore enough for the D.L. if he didn't have an ERA close to 9.00 since the All-Star break. He had a cortisone shot in the shoulder Sunday, the point of which is to give him a chance to pitch through the soreness. But that isn't happening. He'll throw on the side in Pittsburgh, make a minor-league "rehab" start sometime next week, then the Phillies will decide whether they want to welcome their $24.5 million investment back to start against the Mets (since he's 5-0, 1.89 ERA lifetime against them) in August's final week.

Shane Victorino is heading to Philly for an examination of the strained calf he aggravated Tuesday night in a rehab game. He's shelved for at least a few days. A better guess is that this will cost him another two weeks, if not more.

Check during the game for updates, thoughts and witticisms. And please feel free to leave comments and questions that I'll do my best to answer along the way.