Word is that he is close and could probably pitch in the last few weeks of the season and playoffs, if they make it. But... He is entering the last year of his current deal and I'm sure wants a huge payday far more than he wants to pitch for very, very long shot at another WS ring. I wouldn't plan on seeing him until Spring Training 2017. I hope I'm wrong but even if he comes back, it will have to be out of the pen and that isn't where the big problem is right now...

Thank goodness for the youngins' or this team would be 10 games back in the WC race. I had to chuckle about Matheny's idiotic comments about the veterans showing the young guys how things are done. Does the stupid forker not see the pitching and hitting stats of the last few months? Maybe the young guys need to show the veterans a thing or two. I'm losing confidence daily in MM... I finally heard one of the sports media talking heads bring this up on my drive in to work this morning. I wondered how long it would take before the STL media lapdogs would start to point out some of MM's flaws. Like managing a team that is so fundamentally poor, defensively, it has cost them a dozen games or more...

Here is my prediction for the end of the year: Wainwright has surgery and we find out he had some issue all season long (hopefully this is the case or he really is "done"). Garcia is declared mentally unfit to play the game and gets institutionalized at a place where everything is in order and nothing can disrupt his day. The starting rotation for 2017 is Martinez (ace), Lynn, Reyes, Leake and Weaver.

13 Games left and only 1 game out of a WC spot. Probably going to come down to the wire...