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ST. LOUIS -- Discomfort in a bullpen session Saturday left Jaime Garcia with what the Cardinals are hoping will be only a minor setback to his remarkable return to St. Louis.
A cramp near the groin area in his left leg forced him out of last Wednesday's start in the seventh inning, but it wasn't expected to keep him from returning to the mound Tuesday against the Chicago White Sox. Manager Mike Matheny said he's not sure yet whether Garcia even began throwing or of the extent of the injury.
"A lot of it's going to be what the trainers see and feel with Jaime as they do treatment," Matheny said. "We don't have to have necessarily a long plan, just enough to keep guys ready with their in-between starts program."
That meant having Lance Lynn throw his bullpen Saturday, and Monday's off day will allow Lynn to move up a day and pitch Tuesday on regular rest. Matheny said John Lackey and the other pitchers could also be moved up, though Garcia could still return to the mound as soon as Wednesday.
"I was really hopeful that he could just go today, but you've got to push him back a day," Matheny said. "But he could be skipped a turn. I don't have enough information to give you right now with what the medical team sees and what exactly completely was going on that shut him down."
Holliday hitting
Matt Holliday took batting practice prior to Saturday's game against the Cubs for the first time since going to the disabled list with a strained groin.
Matheny expects the left fielder to start running again in the next couple days, though there's still no timeline for his return. Prior to leaving after a misstep June 9 at Colorado, Holliday was batting .303 with three home runs, 26 RBIs and a team-best .417 on-base percentage.
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"He's done a lot of the simulated movements," Matheny said. "But as far as intensity level, I think he's just going to start out pretty slow and see how it feels, see how it looks."
Bourjos back in lineup
Peter Bourjos passed his concussion test and will be back in the lineup for the first time in a week after scoring the winning run against the Cubs on Friday night.
Catcher David Ross caught the Cardinals' center fielder with a cleat to the head as he slid safely into home in the 10th inning. Ross quickly checked on Bourjos, who looked briefly shaken up, but appeared to be fine while talking about the play after the game.
"Just felt like you got your bell rung a little bit," Bourjos said after scoring his second walk-off run on a groundball this season. "Just like getting hit in football. That's what I remember, kind of like when I was playing in high school, but I feel pretty good now the further I get away from the play."
Matheny said the team's trainers agreed, and Bourjos will bat eighth as he looks to improve on a .248 season average against Chicago right-hander Donn Roach.
You can follow Luke Thompson on Twitter at @FS_LukeT or email him at lukegthompson87@gmail.com.
