'Little strain' sidelines Wood
With Prior struggling, it seems like typical spring for Cubs
MESA, Ariz. -- The days of Kerry Wood and Mark Prior dominating the talk of a Cubs spring training were supposed to be over, but there were the former co-aces of the pitching staff Thursday standing on center stage for all the wrong reasons.
Compounding matters, a flukey convergence of about 15 national baseball reporters at HoHoKam Park helped fan the flames of the latest Wood-Prior saga.
Wood, now a late-inning reliever who hasn't pitched in a Cactus League game since allowing a hit and a walk in one scoreless inning Sunday, will continue to be shelved at least through the weekend because of a triceps strain. General manager Jim Hendry said Wood suffered the injury while extending beyond a small hole in the mound Sunday.
''He had a little strain in his triceps, posterior in the bottom -- NOT where he was cut on,'' Hendry said of Wood, who had elbow surgery in 1999 and shoulder surgery in 2005. ''So we'll just give it a couple of days, let [trainer Mark O'Neal] work with him. I'm not anticipating any long-term difficulty, but he is going to skip the next couple of days throwing, for sure.''
Prior, who no longer is a candidate to open the season as a member of the rotation, will pitch in a minor-league scrimmage today that will be more simulated game than actual competition as he tries to iron out some ugly mechanics. Prior's detour this late in camp raised eyebrows among the national media.
But the revelation of Wood's arm trouble summoned bitter memories from past spring training camps, when every little setback involving Wood or Prior became major news events.
It didn't help that Wood's injury was unveiled in a comically Cub-like fashion by new manager Lou Piniella, who has been refreshingly frank with reporters.
During his postgame media session, Piniella was asked if Wood, who is coming off a partial tear in his right rotator cuff, would be getting into a game soon considering the other relievers are in a fairly regular routine.
''Um ... he won't be in in the next few days,'' Piniella said.
Piniella was then asked if something was wrong. The veteran manager let out a loud laugh.
''Boy, I'll tell you, Scotland Yard is snooping,'' he said.
So what's going on?
''He's just not going to pitch in the next couple of days,'' Piniella said while hemming and hawing. ''We'll leave it at that.
''Tomorrow we'll have a little something to say.''
Is it serious?
''No, but he's had a little ... a little minor setback,'' Piniella said. ''We'll talk about it tomorrow, please. Don't read a whole lot into it.''
It's tough not to read into any kind of setback involving Wood or Prior, both of whom opened last season on the disabled list. A lower right triceps strain landed Wood on the disabled list in 2004 from May 20 to July 11.
Prior is said to be healthy, but his session in the minor-league scrimmage -- along with right-hander Jason Marquis -- will be more about rediscovering his mechanics. Piniella said he expects Prior to return to Cactus League action next week.
And Piniella says he understands the fixation media and fans have on Prior.
''I understand the whole thing, I really do,'' Piniella said. ''And we are trying to be as fair as we possibly can. We're trying to get him ready without having to put a timetable on it. We don't need to put a timetable, we've got other people.
''What makes it tough on him and tough on everybody is he was so good. So you expect it to happen overnight. Be patient with him.''
Piniella was surprised at all of the attention generated over Prior's outing scheduled for this morning at Fitch Park.
''He's just getting work,'' he said. ''And he is going to work on the backfield so the pitching coach can stop the game if he wants and talk to him. This is not life or death, or make it or break it. This is just a progression of sorts. We've pitched three or four of our kids down at the minor-league complex, so it's not like he is being singled out, believe me.''
Piniella also made it clear that the bullpen is set -- barring a major setback for Wood -- so that's not an option for Prior.
How would the former All-Star who won 18 games in 2003 respond to a demotion to Class AAA Iowa?
''It's way too early to try to make those determinations,'' Piniella said. ''We've got plenty of time. We just have to play this thing out and see how it works.
''I don't think it will take a few months. Look, he is doing everything that every other pitcher has been asked to do. So from a health standpoint, he's ready to go. That hasn't been the case in the past. Now does he need to work on a little mechanical stuff? Yeah, probably so. And that's probably the biggest reason for him pitching like he is [today]. And then the final thing is, when he's ready, he's ready. You can't push somebody.''
The derby for the fifth spot in the rotation is now between Wade Miller and Angel Guzman, who pitches today against the White Sox. Piniella said No. 4 starter Rich Hill and the fifth starter will stay behind in Arizona to get more work in before they are needed the first weekend of the regular season.
Piniella praised Guzman, saying he has ''probably been throwing the ball as well as anybody we have in camp.'' And Prior is simply too far behind Guzman, who wasn't a serious candidate for that spot entering camp.
But Piniella stressed it's too early to write off Prior.
''I'm confident that before it's all over with,'' he said, ''Mark will get it together and be a good pitcher for us.''