Cardinals push back timetable for Glaus' return

[April 02, 2009]  ST. LOUIS (AP) -- Cardinals third baseman Troy Glaus is expected to miss at least two months following a setback in his rehabilitation from arthroscopic shoulder surgery in January.

Glaus originally was expected to miss just a few weeks of the regular season. But St. Louis said Wednesday that Glaus will be re-evaluated around June 1.

"It's just not responding as quickly as we'd hoped," Glaus said in Jupiter, Fla. "It obviously didn't go as smoothly or uneventfully as we had hoped."

David Freese is the top candidate to start at third with Glaus out. The 25-year-old rookie, acquired from the Padres for Jim Edmonds in 2007, hit .306 with 26 homers and 91 RBIs at Triple-A Memphis last season.

General manager John Mozeliak told The Associated Press that Glaus might have pushed too hard in his rehab schedule. He said Glaus' progress will be assessed in a few weeks.

"Sometimes, being overly optimistic can hurt you," Mozeliak said. "When a player is aggressive trying to move, sometimes it can affect him."

Glaus began throwing, hitting off a tee and fielding grounders midway through spring training, but stopped after soreness lingered longer than expected. He was examined in California last week by Dr. Lewis Yocum, who performed the surgery.

Glaus will be in St. Louis for opening day on Monday, then travel to Phoenix to continue his rehab. He'll be working with physical therapist Keith Kocher, who helped Glaus rehab from shoulder surgery in 2004.

"A new set of eyes and a new set of hands can maybe figure something that, I don't want to say was missed, but maybe something that wasn't recognized," Glaus said.

Glaus batted .270 with 27 homers and 99 RBIs in 2008, his first season in St. Louis. His .982 fielding percentage led all major league third basemen and established a Cardinals team record for the position.

Earlier in spring training, Glaus said the shoulder injury bothered him most of the final two months of last season. The Cardinals tried to avoid surgery, administering a cortisone injection during the season and another in the offseason before medical personnel determined the shoulder wasn't responding.

The surgery repaired the labrum and in Glaus' words, "smoothed down some rough edges" in the shoulder from an injury that doctors believe was a result of ordinary wear and tear. The Cardinals will end up paying for the delay.

"We ran through the course of treatment as you should and ultimately, unfortunately, the pain didn't go away," Glaus said.

[Associated Press; By R.B. FALLSTROM]

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