Diamondbacks Hospital: On the mend. Somewhat.

Checked out

Eric Chavez - sprained left knee

Last time, the news wasn't good as we discovered his knee issue was degenerative, and he moved to the 60-day DL. We wrote, "It may be the beginning of the end for Eric." So it proved, with Chavez retiring at the end of July. He said, "I've honestly been thinking about it for the last three years... This year, with the knee, I think physically, what the doctors had told me, for me to keep grinding on my knee was not going to be the best option for me to do." Credit to him for deciding to retire, when he could have kept cashing Arizona's checks the rest of the year, a decision which cost him over a million dollar. Mind you, since he earned over $84m in his career, he shouldn't be destitute!

Cliff Pennington - sprained left thumb ligament

After hitting over .400 during a nine-game rehab assignment (13-for-32), Pennington rejoined the Diamondbacks on August 6, having missed a little over two months of playing time. He's expected to platoon with Jake Lamb at third and Didi Gregorius at shortstop for the time being. Third is something of a new spot - he has hardly played there at all for us - but Pennington doesn't seem to care. "It's definitely a new position. There's no denying that. … But at the same time, it's still a ground ball... I just want to play. If Miggy goes down, I'll put the catcher's gear on."

Jordan Pacheco - right shoulder tendinitis

Pacheco's injury didn't appear related to overuse by the D-backs, as he hadn't actually started a game for us, before going on the DL in late June. But the departure of Martin Prado and injury of Paul Goldschmidt while he was away, have opened up slots for him, and Arizona have taken advantage of his positional versatility. Since his return, he has started at third, first, second and designated hitter (in Tuesday's rain-out), though has yet to put on the mask for the Diamondbacks. To keep sharp there, he occasionally goes down to the bullpen and handles a pitcher when they throw on the side. It's good to have options.

Mark Trumbo - Stress fracture in left foot

Trumbo missed 71 games before making his first appearance on July 11, and Kirk Gibson thinks he can tell the difference in Mark's outfield play: "When he came back I thought he was moving a lot better in the outfield. I think earlier in the year you saw a guy with a real sore foot. (Health) is going to make you look better, and have a better chance of having success." Trumbo did struggle initially, with only four hits during his first 33 at-bats, none for extra bases. But since his season batting average bottomed out at .184 on July 25, Trumbo has been better, with a line of ,295/.361/.410, and had his first home-run since April on August 9.

New admissions

Paul Goldschmidt - fractured fourth metacarpal, left hand

Goldschmidt's injury is a mirror-image of the one suffered by A.J. Pollocks: fourth metacarpal will be next year's Tommy John surgery, just you wait and see. The circumstances of his injury don't need any further rehashing, I think. What matters is, his season is almost certainly over, Gibson saying the timetable for recovery "Realistically it's eight weeks. So he's done." With our season dead in the water, I'm in agreement with Kirk that caution is best. "If you rush it, then you end up injuring it and you displace the fracture. I think you're looking at worse things." Take your time, come back strong in 2015, Paul. We'll need you then.

Cody Ross - strained left calf

Ross made his second trip of the season to the disabled list on July 22, though his leg had bothered him since an aggressive turn around first against the Marlins, earlier in the month. It does seem to be a recurring issue for Ross, but does not appear connected to the hip injury which delayed his arrival this season. "I think it more has to do when I broke my leg (playing football) back when I was a young kid," Ross said. "My fibula actually isn't completely together. It's kind of offset a little bit, and the doctor thinks that's right where I keep redoing it." It was originally planned for Ross to run the bases on Saturday, but that session was postponed as his leg wasn't up to it.

Still undergoing treatment

Bronson Arroyo - sprained UCL

The original plan was for Arroyo to rest and rehab, and see if that allowed him to avoid surgery, but it didn't work. "I fired it up the last three days, and I could throw 120 feet and I could probably go out there and pitch, but it won't come back fast enough," Arroyo said. "So I'd have to pitch every 10 days and take nine days to get it healthy. It just isn't going to work." The surgery took place on July 15, was apparently successful and it's not just a question of waiting to see what happens. Don't expect any significant updates on this one the rest of the season, since Arroyo won't be lifting anything heavier than a coffee cup.

Patrick Corbin - Tommy John surgery

No updates on the Corbin front since last time.

David Hernandez - Tommy John surgery

32 more days until I get to throw a baseball again...

— David Hernandez (@DHern_30) August 8, 2014

That would make it September 9th, which seems like quite a quick bounceback, considering Hernandez only had his surgery at the very start of April. Obviously, he won't exactly be pitching in a major-league game, but it's still good to see a significant step forward in his rehab.

Daniel Hudson - Tommy John surgery

Great to see Hudson pitching in game situations again. He threw in the Arizona Rookie League on August 5, his first appearance since the original rehab fell apart following a game for Mobile on June 4, 2013. He said afterward , "That was the mental hurdle I was thinking I was going to have to get over. It was actually surprisingly easier than I thought it was going to be. I don't know why. Once I got on the mound and started warming up a little bit, I told myself, 'You're fine. Whatever happens, happens. Just go out there and do what you know how to do and give it my all.'" He was clocked at 93-94 mph, right where it had been, and worked another scoreless inning on the 9th.

Felt good to get another one under my belt tonight. Command not quite where I want it to be but making progress

— Daniel Hudson (@DHuddy41) August 10, 2014

The hope is for Hudson to be back with the major-league club after rosters expand in September, and pitch in up to half a dozen games there as a reliever. Can't wait. It has been far too long since we've seen Hudson.

Chris Owings - left shoulder

While other injurees are showing good progress, with Owings, it has been more a case of two steps forward, one step back. He was temporarily shut down in mid-July to let his shoulder rest, and reports say he now likely won't be back with the team until September. Last week Chris said, "I'm starting to feel a lot better. It's just been a slow process. It's not been fun. But … time just hasn't been on our side. So I just have to wait it out." He was able to take 30 swings in a batting cage on Saturday, and the plan at that point was for Owings to appear in a simulated game tomorrow.

A.J. Pollock - fractured fourth metacarpal, right hand

Pollock also had a setback, after being hit on the same hand which was originally broken, while playing in the first game of his rehab assignment with the AZL on July 31.It was a different part of the limb, and did not immediately appear to be an issue, with Pollock playing another game there and then transferring to Reno. But, while examination showed no further structural damage,  the hand has apparently been bothering him, and Gibson said on Tuesday, "We're going to give him a couple of days off and try to get some of the inflammation out of there. It feels like it's a little too sore to maybe proceed right now. Hopefully in a couple of days he'll get going again."

Matt Reynolds - Tommy John surgery

Been a long period with no updates on the Reynolds front - perhaps in part because he's not on Twitter, so doesn't have people politely inquiring as to his health  But it looks like he will be throwing to his first live batters since going under the knife, over at Salt River Fields on Friday - probably including Chris Owings. Matt had his Tommy John surgery last September, so this news means there's still a chance he might be seen with the club before the end of this season, though in terms of progress, he is clearly going to be behind Hudson, who had his surgery two months earlier.