Silva out of mix for rotation

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- For the first time this spring, a candidate for the last two spots in the Red Sox rotation has been removed from consideration. Veteran right-hander Carlos Silva, who signed a minor league deal with the Sox this winter, has been shut down with shoulder inflammation that is serious enough to prevent him from being considered for the rotation with which the Sox will open the year.

"That’s probably going to set him back enough that he won’t be totally in the mix," said Sox manager Bobby Valentine, who said that while a definitive timetable was unavailable, the injury will keep Silva out of the "little picture situation."

Valentine said that the issue was related to a pre-existing condition that the Sox knew about.

"I think we know exactly what it is and we were hoping it wouldn’t present itself as quickly as it did," said Valentine.

Asked what the longer-term implications were of the condition, Valentine said simply, "It's being discussed."

Silva, 32, last pitched in the majors in 2010 with the Cubs, when he went 10-6 with a 4.22 ERA. He was 2-1 with a 3.52 ERA with the Yankees' Triple-A team last year before getting released.

With Silva out of the mix, the pitchers in camp who remain in the mix for one of the last two spots in the Sox rotation are Daniel Bard, Alfredo Aceves, Andrew Miller, Vicente Padilla, Felix Doubront and perhaps Aaron Cook, though Cook has been brought along on a slower schedule than his colleagues as a precaution in light of his shoulder injuries in recent years.

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