Carpenter Completes Step One
Posted: April 28 07, 2:08 pm
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ST. LOUIS-- Chris Carpenter cleared one hurdle Saturday morning and will have to wait until Sunday to see if he clears the next one.
Still sidelined with swelling in his right elbow caused by bone spurs, Carpenter went through a normal pregame warmup in the bullpen with manager Tony La Russa, pitching coach Dave Duncan and head trainer Barry Weinberg looking on.
Carpenter threw around 70 pitches with a break in the middle of the session and will now wait until Sunday to see if the elbow swells up. The last time Carpenter threw a bullpen session was in Houston, and after the session he felt fine, but the next morning the elbow swelled up and forced the Cards to put Carpenter on the DL.
"It felt really good today, but it felt good in Houston," Carpenter said. "I'm hoping I wake up tomorrow and it feels good and I can move on."
Carpenter threw his entire repertoire of pitches, and didn't shy away from off-speed stuff. If the elbow doesn't swell up on Sunday, Carpenter said he would probably throw another bullpen session on Tuesday in Milwaukee.
Duncan was optimistic after the session, but like Carpenter thought the most important day would be Sunday.
"I don't think what took place [Saturday] is as important as what takes place [Sunday]." Duncan said. "If it was later in the season, he'd be going nuts. He understands how much of the season is left, and he wants to make sure he's a big part of what's left."
Duncan said if Carpenter does throw Tuesday in Milwaukee, they would likely have some batters stand in the box and simulate some game situations, although none of the hitters would actually swing.
If Carpenter does throw another successful bullpen in Milwaukee, La Russa wasn't sure whether or not the right-hander would make a rehab start at Triple-A Memphis or one of the Cardinals' other affiliates. The manager stressed that Carpenter's health is the most important thing.
"Health is the number one thing. The rest of the stuff, the mechanics and all that, will fall into place," La Russa said. "[If] he comes back healthy, that's a huge step for us."
Carpenter said he wouldn't do much for the remainder of the day Saturday. He was planning on working out and then joining his teammates in the dugout for the game.
Or else we wouldn't know.