By Tim Kelly, Sports Talk Philly editor 
Clay Buchholz's short-lived time with the Philadelphia Phillies may be over.
The club announced Tuesday that Dr. James Andrews performed surgery on the 32-year-old's torn flexor tendon in his right forearm. The announcement suggested that Buchholz's expected recovery time is four to six months, which doesn't entirely close the door on him pitching again in 2017, but would make him returning this season an extreme longshot.
If this does mean that Buchholz is out for the season, his tenure with the Phillies was extremely short and ineffective. He gave up eight hits and four runs over five innings in his first start with the team in an eventual loss to the Cincinnati Reds. Buchholz left his second start with the Phillies, which came against the New York Mets, in the third inning, but he had already allowed eight hits and given up six earned runs.
Zach Eflin will replace Buchholz in the team's rotation. Eflin will start for the Phillies tonight as they take on the Mets again, this time at Citi Field.
Buchholz was initially placed on the 10-day disabled list, but will eventually be transferred to the 60-day disabled list.
While the Phillies didn't have much to lose in taking a risk on the two-time All-Star, it appears that general manager Matt Klentak's gamble on Buchholz won't pay off. He was ineffective in his limited time with the team, and will still get paid $13.5 million in 2017, before becoming eligible for free-agency this offseason.
While Buchholz's ineffectiveness may have kept him from establishing trade value this summer, he may have been valuable late in the season in terms of eating innings. While the Phillies do have a very talented Triple-A rotation, they may be short on major league arms in September. The innings of Aaron Nola and Vince Velasquez will likely be limited, if not altogether used up by September. Jeremy Hellickson, who the Phillies can't place a qualifying offer on again this offseason, will likely be traded prior to the July 31 non-waiver trade-deadline.
