Sal

Fasano

Even if Fasano was only going to need a few days off, the Phillies couldn’t afford to wait. They’ll go with Carlos Ruiz and Chris Coste behind the plate for now.

Fasano, who was out of baseball in 2003, hit .229/.273/.429 for Triple-A Columbus last season. He’ll be assigned to Triple-A Ottawa.

That’s four homers in 38 at-bats for a guy who hadn’t played in the majors since 2002. We’re not at all convinced it will continue, but if you need to use a Baltimore catcher it appears Fasano, and not Geronimo Gil, is your man.

Fasano went 3-for-9 with two homers in his brief stint with the Orioles, but that wasn’t enough to make the team switch backups. Maybe he’ll get another opportunity later on.

Fasano missed a couple of games with a sore thumb.

Geronimo Gil hit two homers, so Fasano wasn’t missed.

A quick turnaround for Fasano, who was just removed from the roster yesterday. He technically opted for free agency after clearing waivers, allowing him to be put back on the roster right away. It’s possible that Fasano will get more playing time than Geronimo Gil while Javy Lopez is out. It’s all up to who has the hot hand.

Now he’ll head back to the bench, as Javy Lopez is expected to be activated tomorrow.

Fasano, who is up over the 100-AB mark for just the fourth time in his career, also hit eight homers in 1998. There’s not much doubt that he’ll stick around after Javy Lopez returns from the DL.

Fasano, who was 8-for-45 for the Jays during the first half of the season, will play behind Gregg Zaun and Curtis Thigpen.