SB Nation St. Louis - Jaime Garcia Injury: Shoulder Problem Sidelines St. Louis Cardinals Starter For A Monthhttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/49009/stl-fave.png2012-06-09T08:00:23-05:00http://stlouis.sbnation.com/rss/stream/28316052012-06-09T08:00:23-05:002012-06-09T08:00:23-05:00Joe Kelly: Know Your St. Louis Cardinals Call-Up
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<p>It's time once more for America's least favorite gameshow, Know Your <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.vivaelbirdos.com/">St. Louis Cardinals</a> Call-Up. This week's contestant is replacing <span>Jaime Garcia</span>, who'll<a href="http://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-cardinals/2012/6/6/3067564/jaime-garcia-injury-elbow"> miss more than a month with a shoulder impingement</a>, in the Cardinals' snakebitten rotation. Ladies and gentlement, please welcome <span>Joe Kelly</span>!</p>↵<p>Joe Kelly was a third-round pick in 2009 who spent his college years as a closer at UC-Riverside. The Cardinals converted him into a starter, and since then he's made his way consistently up the farm system while sticking in the rotation. 2012 was the 24-year-old's first trip to AAA Memphis; he carried an ERA of 2.86 through 12 starts there before getting the call for Sunday's start.</p>↵<p>Kelly is a sinkerballer whose groundball rate is going to determine whether he's able to stick as a Major League starter, but he'll also need to ensure a certain competence with his strikeouts and walks; in Memphis he's struck out just 45 batters in 72 innings, and in earlier stops his control was middling at best.</p>↵<p>Kelly's spot in the rotation is likely to evaporate whenever Chris Carpenter can return, but nobody knows yet when that'll be. In the meantime a month of solid starts will save him a spot in the 2013 rotation, when <span>Kyle Lohse</span> and <span>Jake Westbrook</span> are both likely to leave via free agency.</p>↵<p>More Know Your St. Louis Cardinals Call-Up call-ups:</p> <a href="http://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-cardinals/2012/6/1/3056534/maikel-cleto-know-your-st-louis-cardinals-call-up" target="new">Maikel Cleto, hard-throwing reliever</a>; <a href="http://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-cardinals/2012/6/1/3056492/sam-freeman-st-louis-cardinals-bullpen" target="new">Sam Freeman, left-handed human</a>; <a href="http://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-cardinals/2012/5/20/3032109/matt-adams-cardinals-prospect">Matt Adams, enormous slugging first baseman</a>.
https://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-cardinals/2012/6/9/3074234/joe-kelly-cardinals-rotationDan Moore2012-06-09T07:00:47-05:002012-06-09T07:00:47-05:00Jaime Garcia Injury: Shoulder Impingement Could Sideline St. Louis Cardinals Starter Until August
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<p>The <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.vivaelbirdos.com/">St. Louis Cardinals</a> could be without their most dependable starter this season until August, after receiving news that the shoulder injury bothering <span>Jaime Garcia</span> is an impingement that will sideline him for at least a month as he attempts to recover without surgery. <span>Joe Kelly</span>, making his major league debut, will take Garcia's spot in the rotation, at least until Chris Carpenter returns from his own injury.</p>
<p>In Garcia the Cardinals lose their only would-be ace who hadn't struggled already with injury problems. Carpenter still hasn't thrown in a game all year, and <span>Adam Wainwright</span> has only lately looked back on track after a slow adjustment following his own elbow surgery last season.</p>
<p>Kelly, a sinkerballer whose middling strikeout-to-walk ratios have slowed his ascent through the minor leagues, might be a Major League reliever in the long-term, but the Cardinals will give him every chance to prove whether he could be a young, cheap <span>Jake Westbrook</span> in the back of their rotation.</p>
<p>Garcia was 3-4 with an ERA of 4.48 in 11 starts this season, struggling most recently to a two inning, six-run finish that led pitcher and coaches to decide something was wrong. More Cardinals news from SB Nation St. Louis:</p>
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<li>In the latest Legopiece Theater: Dugout Abbey, <a href="http://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-cardinals/2012/6/8/3069396/legopiece-theater-dugout-abbey-the-war-for-late-night">Lance Berkman discovers Adam Wainwright and Yadier Molina are up to something weird</a>.</li>
<li>The Cardinals love Cape Cod League graduates, <a href="http://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-cardinals/2012/6/7/3068715/mlb-draft-results-cardinals-cape-cod-league">but has this draft strategy helped or hindered them</a>?</li>
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https://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-cardinals/2012/6/9/3074098/jaime-garcia-injury-cardinals-rotationDan Moore2012-06-08T07:01:34-05:002012-06-08T07:01:34-05:00Jaime Garcia Injury: St. Louis Cardinals' Starter Seeks Second Opinion Following Shoulder Strain
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<p>The <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.vivaelbirdos.com/">St. Louis Cardinals</a>' rotation suffered another blow Thursday when <span>Jaime Garcia</span> was sent to the disabled list suffering from a shoulder injury that's currently being labeled a strain. <span>Fernando Salas</span> was called up to replace him on the roster, with <span>Brandon Dickson</span> or <span>Joe Kelly</span> set to replace him in the rotation following a second move at AAA Memphis. Salas threw a scoreless inning with a strikeout in his return to the Cardinals' beleaguered bullpen, but the big story was the loss of Garcia, who'd stabilized their rotation as <span>Adam Wainwright</span> struggled to round back into form. </p>
<p>Right now the problem doesn't seem extremely serious; if it worsens, the Cardinals' <a href="http://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-cardinals/2011/7/8/2265482/jaime-garcia-contract-extension-free-agent" target="_blank">four year, $27 million contract</a> with the young left-hander could be a hindrance instead of a bargain. In 81 career games with the Cardinals Garcia is 30-20, with an ERA of 3.45. Just 25, he's emerged as one of the National League's more reliable and consistent left-handed starters. </p>
<p>And whether it's Kelly or Dickson who sets out to do it, he'll be difficult to replace.</p>
https://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-cardinals/2012/6/8/3072381/jaime-garcia-injury-cardinals-rotationDan Moore2012-06-06T08:15:07-05:002012-06-06T08:15:07-05:00Jaime Garcia Injury Worries Intensify After Bad Start Following Elbow Soreness
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<p>The <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.vivaelbirdos.com/">St. Louis Cardinals</a> can't afford to lose <span>Jaime Garcia</span>, but injury concerns are likely to linger after their third-year left-hander struggled in his first start since missing his spot in the rotation with elbow soreness. Garcia allowed six runs in two innings, and after the game manager Mike Matheny, while downplaying concern over the soundness of his elbow, was forthright in admitting Garcia wasn't right. (Glenn Sattell <a href="http://stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/mlb/gameday/index.jsp?gid=2012_06_05_slnmlb_houmlb_1&mode=recap&c_id=stl" target="_blank">reports</a>.) Garcia seemed reluctant to throw his fastball, and when he did it rarely broke 87 or 88 according to PitchF/X. </p>
<p>All this could be fixed more easily if the Cardinals had top prospect <span>Shelby Miller</span> ready to go, but he's struggled since his promotion this season to AAA Memphis, allowing two home runs in his own Tuesday start and going only five innings. <span>Joe Kelly</span>, a sinkerballing right-hander who was a reliever in college, is probably next in line to start. Whatever happens, one thing is certain: The Cardinals need Chris Carpenter to come back strong. </p>
<p>They also need Jaime Garcia to come back when he's ready—hopefully soon. </p>
https://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-cardinals/2012/6/6/3067568/jaime-garcia-injury-elbowDan Moore2012-06-04T08:06:01-05:002012-06-04T08:06:01-05:00Jaime Garcia Ready To Start For St. Louis Cardinals Tuesday
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<p>The St. Louis Cardinals seem unworried that the Jaime Garcia injury that ate up last week's off-day is anything more than some minor elbow soreness.</p> <p>The <a href="https://www.vivaelbirdos.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">St. Louis Cardinals</a>' rotation has already been battered by disabled list visits and general ineffectuality, but one thing it simply wouldn't be able to take is a <span>Jaime Garcia</span> injury. Luckily it looks like the elbow soreness that caused him to miss his scheduled start last Friday hasn't continued bothering him, <a target="_blank" href="http://stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20120603&content_id=32691106&notebook_id=32729064&vkey=notebook_stl&c_id=stl">according to Jenifer Langosch's latest report</a>.</p>
<p>Garcia last pitched on May 26, when he took a loss against unlikely shutout-tosser <span>Kyle Kendrick</span> against the <a href="https://www.thegoodphight.com/" class="sbn-auto-link">Philadelphia Phillies</a>. On the year he's 3-3, with an ERA of 3.78 in 64 innings across 10 starts. The Cardinals recently <a href="http://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-cardinals/2012/5/31/3055823/maikel-cleto-st-louis-cardinals-roster-2012-mlb">optioned likely spot-starter Brandon Dickson back to AAA Memphis</a>, meaning they'd have to make other plans if Garcia had to bow out again.</p>
<p>Alas, top prospect <span>Shelby Miller</span>—who starts that same day in Memphis—likely isn't an option; he's struggled as of late, and the Cardinals themselves are in the kind of skid into which it would be rough to throw a rookie with enormous expectations on his shoulders. For more updates on Garcia's injury and the Cardinals' rotation, stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis or visit <a href="http://www.vivaelbirdos.com">Viva El Birdos</a>.</p>
https://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-cardinals/2012/6/4/3062253/jaime-garcia-injury-cardinals-rotationDan Moore2012-05-31T07:30:30-05:002012-05-31T07:30:30-05:00Jaime Garcia Injury: Elbow Soreness Sidelines St. Louis Cardinals Starter
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<img alt="ST. LOUIS, MO - MAY 26: Starter Jaime Garcia #54 of the St. Louis Cardinals pitches against the Philadelphia Phillies at Busch Stadium on May 26, 2012 in St. Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images)" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/LfKCDcl4gzwZr_vwJtRzHhLaKlQ=/0x0:1000x667/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/photo_images/7133330/145335172.jpg" />
<figcaption>ST. LOUIS, MO - MAY 26: Starter Jaime Garcia #54 of the St. Louis Cardinals pitches against the Philadelphia Phillies at Busch Stadium on May 26, 2012 in St. Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images) | Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>A Jaime Garcia injury is the last thing the St. Louis Cardinals need. Luckily this looks to be a minor case of elbow discomfort.</p> <p>The <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.vivaelbirdos.com/">St. Louis Cardinals</a>' pitching staff took another blow it didn't particular need Wednesday, when it came out that <span>Jaime Garcia</span> would miss his next start with something described, for the moment, as elbow discomfort. B.J. Rains reports that <a href="http://www.foxsportsmidwest.com/05/30/12/Garcia-to-miss-start-with-elbow-discomfo/landing_stlcardinals.html?blockID=738206&feedID=3794">MRIs were negative</a>, and no specific injury has been discovered, but that's cold comfort for a team that just watched No. 4 starter <span>Kyle Lohse</span> give up five earned runs in as many innings. </p>
<p>The good news is that the Cardinals won't need to bring a spot starter out from their messy bullpen; the Cardinals will use their off day to reset their rotation without Garcia, bringing him back on his normal turn after a long weekend off. </p>
<p>Garcia is 3-3 with an ERA of 3.78 in 10 starts in 2012; he allowed four earned runs in six innings in his last start, against the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.thegoodphight.com/">Philadelphia Phillies</a>, during which the Cardinals' offense<a href="http://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-cardinals/2012/5/27/3046261/kyle-kendrick-shutout-st-louis-cardinals"> was inexplicably shut out by Kyle Kendrick</a>.</p>
<p>More Cardinals news from SB Nation St. Louis:</p>
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<span style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px;">After</span><a href="http://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-cardinals/2012/5/30/3051857/chris-perez-you-cant-see-me-royals"> Chris Perez used a John Cena-ism during his save over the Royals </a>I became suddenly, permanently okay with the misguided trade that sent him to the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.letsgotribe.com/">Cleveland Indians</a>. </li>
<li>The Cardinals' rotation would be in much rougher shape if it weren't for <a href="http://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-cardinals/2012/5/29/3049457/lance-lynn-cardinals-rotation-all-star">Lance Lynn's incredible start</a>.</li>
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https://stlouis.sbnation.com/st-louis-cardinals/2012/5/31/3054303/jaime-garcia-injury-cardinals-rotationDan Moore