Article

 

Wood: Nothing to be uptight about

 

March 10, 2005

 

BY MIKE KILEY Staff Reporter

 

MESA, Ariz. -- You know that people will panic, Kerry Wood was told after his latest injury scare Wednesday.

 

"Oh, yeah,'' the Cubs right-hander said in a resigned manner. "Yeah.''

 

Wood took himself out of a game against Texas while he was warming up to start the third inning at HoHoKam Park. He had felt tightness in his right shoulder while throwing in the second inning and was advised after the inning by pitching coach Admin Rothschild to shut himself down without hesitation if any of that discomfort returned in the third.

 

"It's too early to be taking chances out there in spring-training games,'' Wood said. "More precautionary than anything. I'm not concerned about this.''

 

Wood, who had looked good in his one previous start this spring when he pitched two innings, insisted he would resume his normal workout schedule today and make his next scheduled start Monday against the White Sox. Wood never has had shoulder problems, so this is uncharted territory for him.

 

"Panic is not going to help anything,'' manager Dusty Baker said. "Tight means tight. It could have been a muscle spasm. It could have been anything. I don't want to start speculating. I'm just hopeful it's nothing. He stopped on time, instead of trying to be a hero.''

 

Wood had reconstructive right elbow surgery April 8, 1999. His final outing that year was in spring training. He left a game against the Anaheim Angels in Tempe on March 13, 1999, after 1-1/3 innings, although there was no indication he was severely injured until the next day when the Cubs announced it.

 

Last season, Wood went down with a right triceps strain May 11 in Los Angeles. He left that game against the Dodgers after pitching two innings with pain in the triceps, just above the elbow. Initially, the Cubs said he might miss only one start. Instead, he was stuck on the disabled list until July 11 and started just 22 games last season after making 32 starts in 2003 and 33 in 2002.

 

Wood said team doctor Stephen Adams ''did manual tests and the words he used was that it's 'phenomenally strong.'Nothing is sore. Nothing hurts. It was a little bit tight.'' Adams will re-examine Wood today.

 

Asked if the tightness was in the back of the shoulder, Wood struggled to define its exact location.

 

"I can't really point it out,'' he said. "It doesn't bother me right now. It's more like a little ... I don't know how to describe it. I've never had any problems up there.''

 

Trainer Mark O'Neal said tightness doesn't mean pain.

 

"He had no pain in his shoulder,'' O'Neal said. "Pain was never a word he used. He just basically felt tight. All the tests we did on him were very benign and negative. We'll reassess it in the morning and see where he's at.''

 

Injuries were a major factor in the Cubs' failure to win the National League wild-card berth last season. The Cubs often claimed when their injuries first happened last season that they were no big deal -- and some turned into really big deals.

 

"With what's gone on in the past and the injuries we had last year, it's not something you want to take a chance with this year,'' Wood said. "It's just a smarter decision than to stay out there and try to get through some tightness and then have something happen where I can't throw tomorrow.''

 

Wood also was optimistic last season that the triceps strain was a minor setback. But he said comparisons should not be made between how he felt then and now.

 

"That was more pain,'' he said. "It hurt. I was more hoping it would be better. This was more stiff and just tightness.''

 

Catcher Michael Barrett is optimistic that Wood will be fine.

 

"He could have easily pitched through it, but right now it's about keeping one thing from leading to another,'' Barrett said.

 

Wood first felt the tightness in the second inning against the Rangers, but pitched through it.

 

"I finished the inning and everything felt great,'' he said. "I came in and sat down and everything felt great. Warming up, Admin said if I felt anything at all to let him know.

 

"There was just a little bit of tightness, and it's too early to be messing around. We decided it would be best to just shut it down for the day.''

 

The Rangers scored one run off Wood in the first, when he needed 22 pitches to exit the inning. But his control was mostly good, because his first 12 pitches were strikes. In the second inning, Wood walked his second batter of the game, completing his day with 39 pitches total.

 

"I threw some good downhill fastballs, a couple of good curveballs and some decent sliders,'' Wood said. "I got a little bit of work done before I came out.''

Eerily reminiscent of Prior last season...

Uh huh sure.. If I were a Cub fan which I'll never be.. I'd be a tad bit concerned with this injury because of Kerry's past injuries.. But it could be nothing.. But at the same time remember last year when everyone wasn saying dont be concerned over Prior's injury? We all know what happened!

Can't trust a man named Kerry. Seriously though, it doesn't sound too good despite the spin put on it by the Cubs and Wood.

Nothing says "not serious" like a flight back to Chicago, an MRI, and visit to the team orthopediest :lol .....

 

http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article...t=.jsp&c_id=mlb

 

The spin in this article is gold, I'd swear it's Dan Rather talking about the 2004 elections....

I heard on XM this morning that he has brousitis(I know that's spelled wrong) in his shoulder

Article

 

Cubs weigh options if Wood isn't ready

 

March 14, 2005

 

BY MIKE KILEY Staff Reporter

 

TEMPE, Ariz. -- The Cubs no longer are trying to paint a happy face on Kerry Wood's shoulder injury. Manager Dusty Baker acknowledged Sunday that the team has considered alternatives for its Opening Day starter if Wood isn't able to go April 4 against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

 

"It's not too early,'' Baker said about pondering his options if Wood can't recover quickly. "We have talked about a few possibilities, rearranging things possibly if he's not ready at that time. I can't tell you at this time whom, but I'm sure you guys will speculate.''

 

Mark Prior would be a good bet for the Opening Day replacement. Baker had said previously that the planned rotation sequence to begin the season was Wood, Prior, Greg Maddux, Carlos Zambrano and either Ryan Dempster or Glendon Rusch. Zambrano probably has to control his emotions better before he's ready to start Opening Day.

 

"There is always a Plan B,'' Baker said. "I just hope we don't go to C and D.''

 

There might even be a long-shot scenario in which the Cubs add rookie right-hander Angel Guzman to the rotation. He has been one of the team's most impressive pitchers this spring, though the highly rated prospect ran into trouble Sunday against the Los Angeles Angels, allowing three runs on six hits in 1-1/3 innings.

 

The Cubs have hinted that Guzman would be better off starting in the minors and getting a solid base after physical issues ended his last two seasons. If Wood is out, however, Guzman has to get consideration as the No. 5 starter. After all, Wood received his chance to come to the majors in April 1998 when reliever Bob Patterson was injured. Wood never went to the minors again on his way to winning the NL Rookie of the Year award.

 

Wood remains hopeful that all those plans will be wasted thinking. The Cubs will have him throw long toss today on flat ground, which is basically just playing catch aggressively.

 

If he feels no discomfort from the bursitis in his right shoulder or the mild inflammation in his rotator-cuff muscles -- ailments that convinced him to take himself out of a Cactus League game last week -- Wood could throw off the mound as early as Tuesday, pitching coach Admin Rothschild said.

 

But while there remains guarded optimism in some quarters that Wood could bounce back quickly and resume throwing in games soon enough to start on Opening Day, a more realistic tone has crept into the conversation.

 

"We know we have a long way to go,'' Baker said Sunday.

 

That's a big change from last Wednesday, when Wood removed himself from a game against the Texas Rangers after two innings because his shoulder felt odd. Wood said it wasn't pain but he couldn't specifically describe how it felt.

 

Wood's scheduled start today was scrapped quickly after an MRI taken Wednesday night showed that the Cubs' initial claim that he would remain on schedule was far-fetched. It's significant that Dempster will be starting today in Wood's place with Rusch following him to the mound.

 

If Wood isn't ready to begin the season, one or both of them could be in the rotation. If the Cubs want Rusch for the bullpen and Dempster replaces Wood, Guzman and Sergio Mitre are potential alternatives at No. 5.

 

Baker believes Wood won't try to hide anything today when he plays long toss.

 

"He was honest enough the other day when he said he felt something,'' Baker said. "He'll tell us. He is much more mature than he was before.''

 

Baker said simulated games alone don't seem the way to go to get Wood ready for the season. He needs the adrenaline that comes in game matchups against opposing hitters.

 

"The only thing about simulated games is you don't have the same intensity,'' Baker said. "I don't care how hard you try, it's not the same.''

 

He just hopes for the best today from Wood so he can return to Plan A.

 

"Everything depends on how he responds,'' Baker said of Wood's long toss. "If he responds well, we'll see if he has to go back to two innings [in his next start] or if we can build him up to three, four or five and start the season hopefully with six or seven.''

Pitching injuries have Cubs in limbo

 

March 17, 2005

 

BY CHRIS DE LUCA Staff Reporter

 

MESA, Ariz. -- With the calendar working against them, the Cubs are at the mercy of the arms belonging to pitchers Kerry Wood and Mark Prior before making any firm plans for the regular season.

 

Wood and Prior had mixed results in their throwing sessions on what was a day off for their teammates Wednesday at HoHoKam Park. Wood seems to be progressing smoothly, but Prior appears to have a bumpier road ahead. A source said Prior was disappointed with the elbow pain he felt while throwing.

 

''There is no timetable with either one of them until we see them on the mound facing hitters again,'' pitching coach Admin Rothschild said. ''It may be that we start the season and have to watch them -- which you do anyway -- but maybe a little more closely. Which may be less pitches or innings to start with.''

 

Because they must begin lining up their pitchers for the regular season, the Cubs are expected to unveil a shuffled rotation today. Carlos Zambrano, who pitched like an ace during an All-Star season in 2004 with a 16-8 record and 2.75 ERA, is expected to replace Wood as the Opening Day starter against the Arizona Diamondbacks on April 4. Zambrano originally had been targeted to start the home opener.

 

If Wood and Prior stay on target to return the first week of the season, they likely would debut during the opening homestand against the Milwaukee Brewers on April 8-10.

 

But with two fragile arms, the Cubs aren't willing to look quite that far ahead.

 

Wood, who is battling bursitis in his shoulder and inflammation around his rotator cuff, threw off a mound for the first time since being removed early from his second Cactus League start March 9. The right-hander threw 30 pitches, mixing in breaking balls, Rothschild said.

 

''I thought he did as much as you would expect him to do and probably a little more,'' Rothschild said. ''We'll see how he comes in [today] and draw it up after that. I don't want to get ahead until we've seen how he is after he has thrown.''

 

Prior, who has irritation to the ulnar nerve and inflammation in his right elbow, played catch from about 75 feet and was shut down after about five minutes.

 

The elbow pain has bothered Prior since his last Cactus League start March 10.

 

''It's considerably better, which is basically what we expected,'' Rothschild said. ''There is still a little discomfort there.

 

''We didn't expect him to be completely comfortable.''

 

Rothschild said the Cubs will allow the anti-inflammatory drugs Prior has been taking since the weekend to continue to kick in and won't have the right-hander throw again until Friday at the soonest.

 

''It's a slower process because you have to get that inflammation out of there,'' Rothschild said. ''As soon as we can do that, then we'll proceed with him.''

 

Both Wood and Prior declined to speak with reporters.