St. Louis Cardinals’ Chris Carpenter a simulated game away from returning – MLB News
St. Louis Cardinals' ace Chris Carpenter is one simulated game away to make his first start this season. The simulated game which is scheduled for Saturday will pave the way for the return of this quality starter, considered to be the team’s backbone, after what was initially described a season-ending thoracic surgery.
There was initially no hope that he will make his way back into the team, meeting the similar fate that the starter Adam Wainwright had met last year, undergoing Tommy John surgery and missing the whole season.
The team general manager John Mozeliak is looking forward to this much-awaited return with all the setbacks and uncertainties that the starter had been facing all this while.
"I think everybody that knows Chris Carpenter and has been around him and knows how competitive he is, knows he will bring some excitement to the club," Mozeliak said. "I think anybody who has ever been on the DL knows that contributing as a cheerleader is hard."
While the very news of season-ending surgery could be psychologically big, Carpenter dealt with it patiently and with incredible sagacity.
"I went into [surgery] strong enough and knew that if I came out of it strong enough, I thought there was a chance," Carpenter said. "My goal the whole time was to be prepared to let these guys know how I felt at the end of the season so they could go into the offseason knowing what they could count on me for next season."
In 2011, when the St. Louis Cardinals won the World Series title, Carpenter had a central role to play. Especially in the best-of-seven series wherein he outdid the Texas Rangers' batters. In total, he pitched just over 273 innings in 2011.
Thoracic outlet syndrome and subsequent surgery, which was tipped as the end of season for him, the Cardinals starter has nevertheless seemed to make his way back. If all goes well, he will soon be on the mound.
As the Wild Card race intensifies, Carpenter will be instrumental in determining the fate of the World Series champion for the series – if only he makes it on the mound.
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