Cubs' Wood, Prior May Start Season on DL
Associated Press
Kerry Wood and Mark Prior could start the season on the Chicago Cubs' disabled list.
Wood, coming back from a torn right rotator cuff, threw 25 pitches off a mound Tuesday at the Cubs' spring-training complex in Mesa, Ariz. On March 11, he strained his right triceps while pitching against Milwaukee, and it's unclear whether he will be ready for the start of the season.
"Until we get him back out there and get him on a schedule, you just don't know," pitching coach Larry Rothschild said. "Hopefully he could, but it has to work for the team and it has to be in his best interests."
The 29-year-old Wood was just 1-2 with a 4.12 ERA last year and has a 12.00 ERA in three spring training appearances. If he's on the active roster, it most likely would be as a one-inning reliever.
The 26-year-old Prior was 1-6 with a 7.21 ERA last year when his season was cut short by a strained right shoulder. He is 0-1 with an 18.90 ERA in two spring training appearances, allowing seven runs and eight hits in 3 1-3 innings with five strikeouts and no walks.
"How many innings has he pitched?" manager Lou Piniella asked Monday. "You need 25 or so innings. In fairness to the person, is he going to be ready?"
In Tampa, Fla., the New York Yankees said Andy Pettitte is expected to miss his scheduled start for on Friday because of back spasms.
"I don't anticipate it being a major problem," manager Joe Torre said. "He just got a little tightness. It seems to be pretty straightforward."
Pettitte first experienced the back problems while working out Monday, and his scheduled bullpen session Tuesday was canceled. Torre said that Pettitte should be ready for the start of the season if he is able to make a final spring training start next week.
"It kind of stiffened up after I got done," Pettitte said. "I left here and I was like, `Don't worry about it. I'm good.' Then last night, my back just locked on me. I was still pretty locked up this morning. I loosened up a lot."
Wood has stiff shoulder after shaky outing
Associated Press
MESA, Ariz. (AP) - Chicago Cubs right-hander Kerry Wood had stiffness in his right shoulder Monday, a day after an ineffective relief outing. The often-injured pitcher was scheduled to be evaluated by the team's medical staff.
Wood, trying to stay off the disabled list and make the opening-day roster as a reliever, gave up a two-run homer to the Los Angeles Angels' Kendry Morales on Sunday. He yielded three runs and three hits in one inning.
In his previous outing, he pitched a scoreless inning of relief Friday, his first appearance in 12 days after being sidelined by a triceps injury. Earlier this year, he slipped getting out of a hot tub and that set him back a couple of days.
Wood is coming back this season from a partially torn rotator cuff - he opted not to have surgery but to rehab the injury. He wasn't available for comment.
"He obviously didn't have the same strength yesterday and didn't throw the ball as well and had some discomfort after the game," general manager Jim Hendry said. "And today he had some more stiffness than normal than he's had earlier in the camp which was going smoothly for him besides his triceps. Has a little soreness, is going to be evaluated today by our people and we'll go from there."
The Cubs open the season April 2 at Cincinnati.
"We're not worried about opening day right now," Hendry said. "Let's be cognizant of getting him right, see what the people have to say who are going to look at him today."
Hendry said Wood was obviously not happy with the latest setback.
"He's obviously put a lot of work in and you know obviously he wanted to be at the top of his game. He feels badly that he's not 100 percent," Hendry said. "Hopefully we'll get him right and hopefully it won't be significant. It's not about helping us next Monday as much as helping us over the long haul."
Wood, who elbow ligament replacement surgery in 1999 and shoulder surgery in 2005, has made 10 trips to the disabled list in his major league career.
The 1998 NL Rookie of the Year, Wood electrified baseball by striking out 20 Houston Astros in his fifth major league start.
Wood pitched in only four games in 2006. He returned to the Cubs this season with a one-year, $1.75 million deal that could be worth up to $6 million.
Cubs demote Prior
March 28th, 2007
Chicago, IL (Sports Network) - The Chicago Cubs announced Wednesday that pitcher Mark Prior was optioned to Triple-A Iowa, following his final spring training start in which he gave up two hits and three unearned runs in three innings against Colorado.
Prior, 26, was 0-2 in four spring training games, three of which were starts, with a 6.97 ERA; Wade Miller was announced to be the fifth starter on Tuesday.
Limited to nine starts by shoulder problems last season, Prior's record was only 1-6. Prior to his injuries, the right-hander won 18 games in 2003, helping the Cubs reach the NLCS for the first time since 1989.
In addition, pitcher Rocky Cherry and outfielder Angel Pagan were optioned to Iowa