Renteria Proclaims His Knee Pain-Free And Says He's Ready To Play Every Day
Post-Dispatch
April 17, 1999
A little less than three weeks ago, it would have seemed almost preposterous that Cardinals shortstop Edgar Renteria would be playing, let alone appearing in every game.
For most of spring training, Renteria made halting progress in his recovery from a bruised right knee, but since near the end of camp he has made leaps-and-bounds progress.
"Feels good," Renteria said. "No pain. No nothing.
"I did my exercises. The therapist did a good job. The trainers did a good job. At the end of spring training, I thought I could play by the first week of the season."
Renteria said there was no play he could not make now. "Nothing bothers me. Nothing. Before, every move did. But right now, I can tell you I can play every day," he said.
In his first 23 at-bats, Renteria has eight hits for a .304 average. He was one for his first 10 but then reeled off three straight two-hit games. "My timing is not ready yet," he said, "but I think I can get it back."
A 41-base stealer last year, Renteria has tried just twice and been successful once so far. "My speed is coming," he said. "I know it's coming. I like to steal bases."
Renteria said he would have to be honest with himself and manager Tony La Russa if he ached a little. "Sometimes when your arm is tired or your leg is tired, you can play. But in this situation, you can't play. It's dangerous," he said.
"If I feel bad, I will tell them. I don't have to lie."
La Russa said Renteria had to be careful, though, "to the extent that his judgment is not affected by how much he wants to be in there. He hates to sit down."
Renteria hit second for the third game in a row Friday night against Houston. He also has been a No. 1 and No. 6 hitter with the Cardinals.
Batting second "is my position," Renteria said, adding that he didn't object to hitting anywhere else. "That's where I hit in the minor leagues, and when I came to the big leagues, I batted second, too. Second place is where I feel comfortable."
La Russa said that batting Renteria second and dropping struggling rookie J.D. Drew to No. 6 "gives us a new look. But I don't want to make any promises I can't live up to. All those things about J.D. hitting second are still true. He earned it in spring training."
Houston manager Larry Dierker said that in a "best-case scenario," outfielder Moises Alou, who had what was thought to be season-ending knee surgery in February, would be back with the Astros by mid-August. "Worst-case scenario is that he's out for the year and the playoffs," he said.
Third baseman Fernando Tatis, drilled in the shoulder blade by a pitch Wednesday night, was back in the lineup Friday night. "Modern medicine," La Russa said.
Houston starter Sean Bergman is tied for the club lead in home runs with two. Asked if he would use Bergman as a pinch-hitter, Dierker joked, "Only if we needed a home run."
Ray Lankford, a career .288 hitter against the Astros with 10 home runs, was out of the lineup Friday with a sore knee. That was fine with Dierker.
"That's why we'd like to take advantage of it and win the series against them," Dierker said.
"Their rotation is pretty average, but they've got a really good bullpen. What you'd like to do is punish the starters so that you don't have to catch up once they get into the bullpen because you may not do it."
Dierker is dissatisfied with baseball's various starting times which, he thinks, disrupt team's rhythms. "I'd rather have all night games. Even Sunday," he said.
Cardinals first baseman Mark McGwire met former President George Bush at the batting cage during batting practice. McGwire signed a baseball for Bush. The former president, who lives in Houston, gave McGwire a box with the presidential seal affixed. The box apparently contained a medallion.
McGwire stuck the box in his back pocket, and Bush advised McGwire "not to slide with it."
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