Gorzelanny's next start in question

MILWAUKEE -- Tom Gorzelanny's Wednesday start is in doubt after the left-hander got hit by a line drive in the second inning on Friday.

X-rays were negative, but Gorzelanny was in considerable pain after he took a Jayson Werth liner off his left elbow on just the 13th pitch he threw against the Nationals. He said nothing changed from Friday to Saturday.

"It feels exactly the same," said Gorzelanny, who had baseball seam marks on his elbow according to Brewers manager Ron Roenicke. "There's probably more to report when there's progress able to be made. Progress report whenever we find out is the progress report."

Roenicke said he spoke with Brewers general manager Doug Melvin prior to Saturday's game with the Nationals to explore the team's options if Gorzelanny is unable to go Wednesday against the Giants or beyond.

"His start on Wednesday is definitely a question mark," Roenicke said. "Doug was in earlier and we were talking about different scenarios, what we could do. It's getting really complicated."

Roenicke has already used 11 starters this season, including Gorzelanny and Saturday starter Donovan Hand, who each started in the bullpen. Top prospect Tyler Thornburg is filling in for Yovani Gallardo, who left his Tuesday start with a left hamstring strain and was placed on the 15-day disabled list on Wednesday.

Roenicke said the DL is a possibility for Gorzelanny, but it depends on if he will be able to make his subsequent start after Wednesday.

"We probably won't know that for the next couple days," Roenicke said. "If the next couple days the doctors don't think that that second start is a going to be a good possibility, then we may have to [put him on the DL]."

Dipping into the bullpen again for a spot starter is unlikely according to Roenicke, taking Alfredo Figaro, who returned from a month-long stint on the DL on July 24, out of the equation. That leaves a couple likely possibilities from Triple-A Nashville in Johnny Hellweg and Jimmy Nelson.

Hellweg has dominated at Nashville this season, but he already made an unsuccessful jump to the Brewers that ended in mid-July. In three starts and one relief appearance, Hellweg coughed up 13 earned runs on 19 hits (10.97 ERA) in 10 2/3 innings. His biggest issue was control as he walked 13 and struck out just three.

"We'll see, we'll see," Roenicke said. "I don't know. There are so many different things that we talked about. We've got a lot of options."