Cardinals co-ace Chris Carpenter, who's been limited this spring because of a bulging disk in his neck, was able to throw from a mound for the first time in two weeks on Friday. MLB.com's Jennifer Langosch reports that Carpenter logged 30 fastballs at an estimated 70-75% effort.“I felt good,” Carpenter said. “The neck feels good. My arm feels good. Hopefully the next step either we do that again in a day or so or we do some live [batting practice] to try and move it in the right direction.”
While this qualifies as progress, Carpenter isn't likely to see game action for at least another week.
Carpenter, of course, hopes to be a key part of the Albert Pujols-less Cardinals in 2012. Last season, Carpenter led the NL in innings pitched, notched a 3.45 ERA and was a rock in the World Series triumph over the Rangers. On the other hand, he'll be 37 next month, and he's endured a number of injuries over the course of his career.
Yet with Adam Wainwright's returning from Tommy John surgery, Carpenter needs to be his vintage self as much as he's able. Another consideration is that Carpenter's absence would almost certainly force Lance Lynn into the Cardinal rotation, thereby thinning the ranks of an impressive bullpen.
Most forecasting systems tab Carpenter for 200-ish innings and an ERA in the mid-3.00s. Obviously, that's quite useful, even in today's depressed offensive environment. Today, at least, Carpenter took a step toward meeting those expectations.
