05/15/2005 12:49 PM ET
Zambrano to undergo MRI on elbow
Soreness, early exit prompts precautionary scan in Chicago
By Carrie Muskat / MLB.com
WASHINGTON -- Chicago Cubs pitcher Carlos Zambrano will undergo an MRI scan on Monday in Chicago on his right elbow after having to leave Saturday's game early because of tightness.
"He was going back [to Chicago] for the off-day anyway," Cubs athletic trainer Mark O'Neal said Sunday about Zambrano. "While he's home, basically for precautionary reasons, we'll send him back and get it checked out so we know exactly what we're dealing with."
Zambrano was pulled after 3 1/3 innings on Saturday, and O'Neal described the problem as similar to tennis elbow. He took the loss, a 4-3 decision to the Nationals, and is 3-2 with a 4.09 ERA.
"The complaints today are the same that they were last night, not any worse," O'Neal said. "We're talking 10 to 12 hours from when he was pitching in the game, so for it not to be worse, in my mind, is a good sign."
Zambrano, 23, said he felt fine until Washington's Vinny Castilla hit a two-run single off him in the fourth inning. Zambrano faced three more batters after that before exiting.
"It's nothing to worry about," Zambrano said. "It's not a cramp, but a tired arm, fatigue. I will try to do the best possible to be on my schedule and not miss any starts."
That would be this weekend against the Chicago White Sox. First, the Cubs want to figure out what's going on with Zambrano's elbow. He has some soreness both above and below his elbow, and the pain below the elbow is new, Zambrano said.
"It feels like I have concrete in my arm, it feels heavy," he said.
Zambrano was coming off a 136-pitch complete game in his previous start, which is his longest outing ever. He didn't connect the current problem with being overextended.
"How many pitches did I throw [Saturday?] Sixty something? [Cubs manager Dusty Baker] told me before the game, 'I don't want to let you go more than 100, 105 because of [your] last start,'" Zambrano said.
So, throwing 136 pitches on May 8 had nothing to do with his elbow problem?
"Nothing. Absolutely nothing," Zambrano said.
His side sessions were OK, he said, but he admitted his arm felt tired between starts.
"Normally, I feel soreness in my bicep, but I've never felt my arm heavy," he said.
It'll be tough to get Zambrano to miss a start. He hasn't been on the disabled list since 2002 when he was sidelined with a partial ulnar collateral ligament sprain in his right elbow.
"I'm a horse. They'd have to kill me [to get him to miss a start]," he said. "I don't want to miss any starts. I will not miss any starts. I have to have my arm explode. I can't miss any starts. That would happen if I feel pain or I have surgery on my arm. I don't want to do that -- unless God wants."
The Cubs have had their share of injuries the last two seasons. Right now, six players are on the disabled list, including pitchers Kerry Wood and Joe Borowski.
"I don't have an answer to that," Zambrano said. "How do you say -- the [curse] of the goat? I don't believe in that. People may think like that, but I don't say that. This team has been through injuries. We have one of the best teams in the National League. These things happen. Sometimes you will have healthy Cubs and we'll see what we're capable of doing."
Carrie Muskat is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.