PHILADELPHIA, July 26 (UPI) -- The Philadelphia Phillies suffered a major personnel blow Thursday when Chase Utley suffered a broken right hand against Washington.
The Phillies said their all-star second baseman suffered the injury when he was struck by a pitch by Nationals' rookie right-hander John Lannan in the bottom of the fifth inning.
Lannan was making his major league debut. He was ejected after also hitting slugger Ryan Howard.
Utley stayed in the contest, but X-rays after the Phillies' 7-6 loss showed the hand was broken.
"We're losing one of the best players in the game for who knows how many weeks," said Philadelphia assistant General Manager Ruben Amaro Jr. on the team's Web site after Utley was placed on the 15-day disabled list.
Utley is hitting .336 with 17 home runs and 82 RBI in 399 at-bats this season.
