Kyle McClellan Expected To Rejoin St. Louis Cardinals' Rotation Wednesday Vs. Nationals

Kyle McClellan, whose nagging hip injury led to a brief stint on the 15-day disabled list, is expected to return to the St. Louis Cardinals’ beleaguered rotation on Wednesday, when he’ll pitch the second game of the team’s series against the Washington Nationals. McClellan declared himself 100% over the weekend, which—if the Cardinals doctors happen to agree—should lead to the end of Lance Lynn’s first trip through the Major Leagues.

McClellan, who spent three years in the Cardinals’ bullpen prior to being converted in the wake of Adam Wainwright’s season-ending elbow injury, sits at 6-2 with an ERA of 3.86 in 2011; he’s concerned some observers with his less-than-stellar peripherals, particularly a low strikeout rate, but the curse of BAbip has yet to bite him. He was coming off his worst start of the season when he hit the disabled list.

Lance Lynn was 1-1 with a 5.23 ERA in the two games he spent with the Cardinals, flashing a low-to-mid-90s fastball and a surprising willingness to go up the ladder on Major League power hitters. He figures to be the first starter recalled from Memphis for the remainder of the season, and a Spring Training fixture in 2012.

Kyle McClellan To Return To St. Louis Cardinals Rotation After 15 Days

St. Louis Cardinals starter Kyle McClellan, whose hip injury landed him on the disabled list after the worst performance of his brief career in the starting rotation, will return shortly after the minimum 15 days are up, if the Cardinals' rejiggering of their rotation is any indication. Rookie Lance Lynn will be moved to Thursday instead of Wednesday for his next start, with Tony La Russa's stated goal "putting McClellan available on the first day he's eligible."

McClellan is eligible to return to the active roster on June 15. 

After three years as a set-up man in the Cardinals' bullpen, McClellan had done a solid job replacing Adam Wainwright through the first two months of the season when his hip injury struck. Through 11 appearances he was 6-2 with an ERA of 3.70, although some worry about his middling peripherals to start the season. After a career strikeout rate of 7.0 he was down to 4.5 per nine innings as a member of the rotation. 

Lance Lynn will continue to start in McClellan's absence. 

Colby Rasmus Triples, Homers In St. Louis Cardinals Loss

There wasn't much good to take from the St. Louis Cardinals' ugly, defensive-nightmare loss to the San Francisco Giants, but it was a pretty good day to be Colby Rasmus, all things considered. The Cardinals' 24-year-old center fielder hit his sixth triple of the season—as many as he hit in all of 2009 and 2010—and popped his fifth home run, a grand slam, to do most of the offensive heavy lifting for the Cardinals in the loss. Rasmus's power is down a little from 2010, but he's shown a remarkable variety of offensive talents in 2011, utilizing his speed in particular as an offensive weapon. His five stolen bases put him on pace to top his inefficient 12 in 2010, and the six triples are second in the National League, behind only Jose Reyes. 

Fantasy owners who don't have to worry about his occasionally spotty defense are finally getting the multiple tools that were promised for Rasmus when he was taken with the Cardinals' first-round pick in 2005. Cardinals fans who do have to worry about the defense—well, when he's hitting like this it's the least of their defensive concerns. 

Maikel Cleto's Fastball The Only Benefit Of Maikel Cleto's Debut

St. Louis Cardinals' Rookie Lance Lynn Battered In Debut, Betrayed By Defense

Lance Lynn got off to a perfect start to his Major League debut when the St. Louis Cardinals played the San Francisco Giants in the final game of a series with the champs on Thursday, but the party was over when the Cardinals’ defense struggled to keep the rookie’s obligations to three outs per inning. A bobbled double-play ball by Ryan Theriot left Lynn in to face Aubrey Huff, who promptly deposited a pitch into the bleachers for a home run, and things just got worse from there. Colby Rasmus shined in the loss, hitting a triple and a grand slam to drive in six runs.

Aubrey Huff was the star for the Giants; he hit three home runs against three different pitchers, going deep against Lynn, fellow debut pitcher Maikel Cleto, and lefty Brian Tallet to drive in six runs of his own. Pitcher Jonathan Sanchez, who earned his fourth win of the season despite walking six and striking out just one, hit a strange double on a ball that fell between drifting outfielders Rasmus and Allen Craig.

Kyle McClellan To Disabled List, Lance Lynn To Start Thursday

St. Louis Cardinals starter Kyle McClellan, whose emergency conversion from the bullpen following Adam Wainwright's injury resulted in a 6-2 start to this season and a brief stint atop the National League leaderboard, will spend 15 days on the disabled list dealing with a strained hip flexor following the worst start of his career on May 30. McClellan, who's struck out 34 batters in 67 innings, allowed seven runs in four innings for his second loss of the season in the outing. He'll be replaced, on short rest, by Cardinals prospect Lance Lynn, who will make his Major League debut after putting up a 4.06 ERA through the first 10 starts of his second season at AAA Memphis. 

Lynn, a first rounder in the Cardinals' 2008 draft, is a 24-year-old who was known earlier in his career for a sinker, which he's traded lately for a harder, straighter fastball that's boosted his strikeouts as he rises through the high minors. He put himself briefly on the national map by striking out 16 batters in a Pacific Coast League playoff game in 2010. 

Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak noted following McClellan's exit that the Cardinals would have wanted to limit McClellan's innings at some point in the summer anyway.