Updates on Blanton, Thome and Andino

NEW YORK - The Phillies sent pitcher Joe Blanton's medical records to Orioles orthopedist Dr. John Wilckens this afternoon, according to a source. This is another indication that a trade is close to being finalized. That's it for the Blanton update. Jim Thome had a trigger point treatment and a cortisone injection in his neck yesterday, "but it wasn't much better today," said manager Buck Showalter. "A little bit. Not much." Thome will return to Baltimore tonight and undergo an MRI at 11 a.m. tomorrow. The Orioles expect to receive the results later in the afternoon. "Just make sure there aren't any structural issues going on there," Showalter said. "Been a couple days that he's been unavailable to us, so just want to find out what we're dealing with." If Thome is forced to go on the disabled list tomorrow, second baseman Robert Andino could take his spot on the 25-man roster. Andino is in Triple-A Norfolk's lineup again tonight after going 1-for-5 with an RBI last night, and Showalter indicated a few days ago that the rehab assignment might last only two games. "He felt good," Showalter said. "I talked to (Norfolk manager) Ronny Johnson today and looked at the stuff. Definitely some normal soreness for not playing for a couple weeks. Ronny asked him about coming out of the game about the seventh, eighth inning. He said, 'No I'm fine." Said he played well, moved around well." Asked if Andino will be activated tomorrow and join the team in New York, Showalter replied, "Not necessarily. See how tonight goes. We've got options. If Robert feels like he's fine and ready to go, it would present itself as an option for tomorrow. We'll see how tonight goes." There's an outside chance that Andino will stay with the Tides through tomorrow night's game. "They're home for a while," Showalter said. "I believe they're off Wednesday. I'm hoping he feels great after tonight. "I'd like to see him have a couple games where he plays and feels OK the next day. The reason I waited to call Ron was to make sure when he came in today that he felt good. He said he felt fine." Replacing Thome with Andino would be the simplest roster move. Chris Davis could continue to serve as the designated hitter, and Lew Ford and Endy Chavez could play left field, depending on the matchups. However, the MRI could come back clean and Thome could remain day-to-day.