Anyone who saw a replay of Howard’s injury as he slid back into 2nd base will know that he had a pretty significant injury to his ankle. A sprain is a tearing of the ligaments that surround the ankle and attach one bone to another. Sprains can sometimes be fairly minor if only a small amount of ligament tissue is involved or severe if a lot of ligament tissue is torn, which is why sometimes the injury can be “walked off” and results in only minor time off or can be disabling for a lot longer. Initial treatment involves things to control swelling such as Ice, Elevation, Compression with some kind of brace and Rest from impact activities(running). Current methods of treatment encourage early range of motion exercises and weight bearing as soon as tolerated with some kind of brace for protection to allow functional healing and rapid return to sport. In Howard’s case it will be a day to day decision most likely as to when he plays. Because he is a First baseman and isn’t required to move as much, he may be able to return sooner than an outfielder would. The Phillies need his bat in the line-up and he will probably come back with his ankle still being a little sore if he’s able to put full weight on it, before it’s all the way healed, which generally takes 4-6 weeks for a significant sprain